Several days ago, local media outlets reported that approximately 150 staffers in the Harris County District Attorney’s office saw previously approved pay increases go into effect. The increases had been sought by DA Chuck Rosenthal (and approved by Harris County Commissioners) in 2007 after attorneys had received a raise earlier in the year.
Of course, most major media outlets chose not to report it like that, instead emphasizing that the sometime object of Rosenthal’s affections (or at least affectionate emails), his executive secretary, received a hefty pay increase as well. Here is a snippet from KPRC-2’s reporting, which was more balanced than some:
Harris County District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal recently approved an $11,000-a-year raise for his secretary to whom he had sent a series of romantic e-mails. However, he said he was not showing favoritism, KPRC Local 2 reported Thursday.
The raise for Kerry Stevens, the embattled prosecutor’s executive secretary and former lover, took effect Saturday, according to county payroll records.
The raise boosts Stevens’ salary from about $78,000 per year to about $89,500.
Rosenthal told KPRC Local 2 that Stevens’ raise went into effect with 150 others in his clerical and administrative support staff.
The district attorney said he pushed for pay raises for all of his staff members after his attorneys and investigators were given increases earlier this year.
Rosenthal recently admitted that he and Stevens had an affair in the 1980s, but he said that is not the reason she was given a raise. He said it was because she has not had a pay hike since 2003.
“No, she wasn’t granted any favoritism because of any relationship we had or you’d have to say that all these other 28 percent of the staff that got increases also got special favors because they were close to me,” Rosenthal said.
Stevens’ pay raise puts her at the top of her pay grade. Rosenthal has also been criticized for allowing Stevens to use one of the department’s pool cars.
But in terms of percentage, other employees received larger raises than Stevens.
Payroll records show that many of Rosenthal’s support staff saw salary ceilings increase 12 to 15 percent.
Harris County commissioners approved the salary increases on Dec. 18. Joe Stinebaker, spokesman for County Judge Ed Emmett, said commissioners usually follow recommendations of the county’s elected officials.
We mostly agree with Cory Crow, who seems unpersuaded by the media piling-on with regard to this story.
However, we do think the piling-on does help illustrate why it’s time for Rosenthal to step down. At the very least, his overly romantic emails and past history with his executive secretary have created a situation in which no aspect of her current or past job performance will be judged fairly or objectively by the media or the public. She may be a GREAT executive secretary, but because of Rosenthal’s behavior, most people won’t judge her that way — instead, you’ll see fairly routine staff pay raises portrayed as unseemly by MSM and alternative sources alike. It is not really fair to Rosenthal’s executive secretary — but it’s a direct result of his bad judgment and inappropriate behavior.
Contrary to the view of Rosenthal’s wife, whose letter to the Chronicle yesterday seemed ill-advised, Rosenthal’s office behavior and advances toward a subordinate aren’t just “private” behavior between Rosenthal, his wife, and his secretary, because it involved a public office — and because it’s human nature now for people to question the office’s judgment and motivation on all sorts of matters (including routine ones, like these pay raises). That’s another reason why it would be helpful to the operation of the office for Rosenthal to step down.
RELATED COVERAGE: Chronicle, AP.
BLOGVERSATION: Lose an Eye, It’s a Sport, Harris County Criminal Justice, Slampo’s Place, Red Ink: Texas.
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