Administrator Eric Greenway fired by council, misconduct investigation “ongoing”
Four days after being placed on paid administrative leave and two days after sexual harassment and retaliation allegations against him surfaced, County Administrator Eric Greenway was terminated with cause Friday by the Beaufort County Council in a 10-0 vote.
Greenway has been mired in controversy since it was announced that he was the focus of a criminal investigation for alleged misconduct. Few details of the alleged misconduct and subsequent investigation have been released. It is known the investigation involves a former county employee, Lisa Lynch, who said in a statement Wednesday she was asked to provide testimony to the investigators and act as a witness.
Lynch also alleged that Greenway sexually harassed her for several months. On Tuesday she was terminated from her county job and she alleges the firing was retaliation against for her declining to enter into a romantic relationship with the former administrator. She also cited her agreement to provide information to investigators as another reason behind the alleged retaliation.
During the third special purpose meeting this week, the council immediately exited the dais and went into executive session. After an hour of deliberation, a vote was taken and passed - approving the immediate termination of Greenway. Missing from Friday’s meeting was councilperson York Glover.
Key to the proceeding was the council’s ruling the firing was “termination for cause” which means the county leaders believe they had sufficient reason to terminate the contract without having to pay any additional compensation or severance. Per his employment agreement, firing “without cause” would have triggered a severance payout to Greenway equal to one year of salary at $210,000. There was no discussion regarding the details of “the cause” behind the termination. “This still is a personnel matter and we are advised by our legal council that we cannot talk about it,” Council Chairman Passiment said. “We would not have taken the action unless we believed it was the right thing to do,” Passiment later said.
Greenway signed the five-year contract on June 17, 2021 and there were nearly three years remaining on the agreement.
The details regarding what permits council to fire Greenway for cause are captured in the employee agreement he and Passiment signed in June of 2021. The passage reads, “Grounds for termination for cause shall be the conviction of the Employee of a crime involving improper gain to himself or another individual, the commission of any crime including moral turpitude, illness or disability or the refusal or neglect of Employee to perform the duties of his office.”
Greenway’s termination is effective immediately. John Robinson, acting county administrator, will serve as interim administrator while the council searches for Greenway’s permanent replacement.
Jeff Kidd, spokesman for the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s office declined to comment on the ongoing misconduct investigation. That suggests it will proceed until further notice.
Multiple calls to Greenway’s phone seeking a response went unanswered.
This story was originally published July 28, 2023 at 12:53 PM.
