Leelanau administrator responds to intimidation allegations, says the clerk's office is the underlying issue

In a 25-page letter, Leelanau County administrator James Dyer is asking the Leelanau Board of Commissioners (LBOC) to separate factual allegations from opinion.

That’s in response to allegations by Leelanau County Finance Director Rio Risbridger of physical intimidation and poor leadership.

Those allegations led to a LBOC vote which put Dyer paid leave last month.

In the letter, Dyer admits to certain allegations while also trying to bring a wider context to workplace dysfunction.

Dyer admitted he suggested using a terminated employee’s county credit card after his card had reached its limit. After Risbridger objected, that did not happen.

Dyer also admits to using profanity when Risbridger came to him and asked for additional training from the Clerk's office.

“As for the ‘they are not going to f***** train you’ comment made to Risbridger, I did say words to that effect,” Dyer wrote.

In Risbridger’s earlier complaint, she alleged Dyer also slammed his hand down on the table.

“I don’t recall doing so, but I probably did apologize for my wording of that response,” Dyer wrote. “This strong language was NOT directed towards Risbridger.”

While Dyer writes that Risbridger’s complaint deserves review, he says it should not be used to undo the work he and the Board have been doing to improve what he says is a weak and dysfunctional Finance Department.

The source of that dysfunction, writes Dyer, is not him but due to years of interference by the County Clerk’s office which has stalled replacing long outdated accounting software and hoarded institutional knowledge.

In 2024, the Leelanau Ticker reported on a county employee workplace study which resulted in many negative responses. Among the findings were employee responses that claimed the clerk’s office was “mean-spirited” and that the office “seem[ed] to put their noses in everything.”

“Why Risbridger now levels her complaint against me, rather than the correct target, is for you as the County’s policy makers to decide,” Dyer wrote. “It remains a mystery to me.”

The Leelanau Board of Commissioners are scheduled to go over the findings of the investigation into Risbridger's complaint on June 9th.

You can read Dyer’s full letter here.