Maplewood wins first round of legal battle

After Sherrie Le was fired as Maplewood's human resources director last August, she filed three lawsuits against the suburb. Yesterday the Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled against Le in one of the cases. The three-judge panel determined that Le was an "at will" employee and therefore could be terminated for pretty much any reason. The ruling essentially invalidates two of the lawsuits.

Le is one of at least a dozen top employees who have resigned, been fired, or had their jobs eliminated since a new ruling troika took over the city council last year. (See my CP cover story on the subject for more details.

Le's suit in Ramsey County District Court remains alive. That complaint charges that Maplewood's actions violated labor laws and state whistleblower protections. "That's our strongest case," says Gregg Corwin, Le's attorney. That case is slated for trial in October.