County's contract expired

TIFFIN — Seneca County commissioners ushered in the New Year without the contracted services of their media coordinator, or any resolution to the alleged mismanagement of county resources when they were used to attack a reporter after a commissioner disliked a news article the reporter had written. Sheri Trusty, the media coordinator, works under an independent contract with the county that expired at the end of 2024, and commissioners have not had any public discussion or vote whether to retain her services. Because of the lack of a contract, it is unclear if Trusty's services will be used by the county in 2025. Paradiso The news story that sparked controversy, "Frankart has family dispute," Oct. 12, was based on police reports and court records about a court fight involving commissioner Bill Frankart and his former daughter-in-law for custody of Frankart's 4-year-old grandchild. The woman won full and final custody in early September, after which Frankart hired a man to allegedly stalk and harass her, according to a court ruling. Trusty wrote a news release immediately after the story published, quoting Frankart and attacking the reporter. In Trusty's false account, the reporter was accused of being on a "witch hunt" for Frankart and being unprofessional. Trusty posted the news release styled as a news story at a county commissioners' website without approval from at least two of the three commissioners. Seneca County Prosecutor Derek DeVine asked the Ohio Attorney General's office to determine if there should be a criminal investigation. A state agent, however, determined it was a civil matter regarding the improper use of county resources and not a criminal matter. The agent did not explain how he reached that conclusion. The matter was also referred to the Ohio Ethics Commission, which has not yet commented on the complaint. Frankart has not responded to questions about his court dispute with his former daughter-in-law, who divorced his son, Zachary Frankart, after Zachary was convicted on sexual assault charges and sent to state prison. Commissioner Frankart has not responded to questions about the court ruling or about whether county resources were misused when Trusty wrote and posted the news release with false information attacking the A-T's reporter. Trusty's contract, which expires Dec. 31, 2024, provides little detail about her responsibilities and no instructions about how news releases and other public statements from the county are approved. She is paid $26,000 annually, or about $2,167 per month. Commission president Tony Paradiso has ignored repeated inquiries asking if commissioners will take any steps to make sure county resources are not misused the same way again, if the media coordinator's contract will be extended, or if it will be better defined to assure the county does not promote misinformation in the community in the future.