BUCYRUS — Council President Kurt Fankhauser has filed a lawsuit in Crawford County Common Pleas Court against the City of Bucyrus and four current officials—Law Director Brandon Gobrecht, Councilmember Clarissa Slater, Auditor Kali Lewis, and Deputy Auditor Kim Felkey—alleging defamation, unlawful payments, and emotional distress tied to the resignation of Council Clerk Miranda Wise.
The 5-page complaint, filed pro se on July 22, seeks to block the city from paying Wise for five days of unused personal leave after her resignation. Fankhauser argues such payment would be unlawful under Ohio law and claims the officials involved participated in a “coordinated effort to misappropriate city funds.”
He also accuses Gobrecht and Slater of defaming him in public statements to the press and seeks $75,000 in damages from each. In addition, the lawsuit demands a court order declaring that Fankhauser, as Council President, is not legally required to perform Council Clerk duties during a vacancy.
Full Statement from Councilmember Clarissa Slater
Councilmember Clarissa Slater, who is specifically named in the lawsuit and accused of defamation, offered a lengthy and scathing response to FreeWire:
"The Council President who called me a “gold digger,” a “clueless bimbo,” and accused me of having children for money—while stalking me at my children’s activities and social outings by hiding in the shadows creepily smiling and taking voyeuristic photos of me, brought false light to my personal life, and shared this information with an alleged felon who has actively threatened me in the past.
The same Council President who allegedly told a former friend, “If I had a wife I’d chain her barefoot to the stove.” The same man who stated I was hysterical, yet rips gavels and raises them up in attempt to intimidate others. An individual who storms out of a council meeting after screaming at his colleagues, and goes and sits with his “friends.” The same individual who said that all the women on council are the source of the city’s problems, and quoted a Bible verse that women should remain silent, that it is not their place to speak. The very same Council President, in his official capacity, intentionally disseminated a false and baseless rumor that I was engaged in illegal sexual conduct in the law director’s office. Spreading that rumor in an attempt to coerce the law director to sue the tourism board on behalf of the city on a baseless accusation—now claims defamation and a hostile work environment…
I trust the courts will see this for what it is: a baseless, performative lawsuit meant to distract from his own behavior. It’s an act of someone coming unhinged. So much so, he attempted to intimidate me after the last council meeting. Shame on Crawford County Now for platforming such a delusional narrative without question."
Full Statement from Law Director Brandon Gobrecht
Law Director Brandon Gobrecht, also named in the suit, offered a more restrained but pointed response:
"It's a bummer that Kurt keeps doing this. He really screwed over the City as a whole with this malarkey. Likely the only reason he named me in the lawsuit was to keep me from being the one to defend the City against this frivolousness."
Background and Allegations
According to the complaint, Clerk Miranda Wise submitted her resignation on July 14 with an intended final workday of July 25. She also submitted a request to use five days of personal leave during that time. Fankhauser alleges he denied the leave, but that Wise submitted a timesheet anyway, and that city officials proceeded to approve the payment without proper authorization.
The suit claims this action was part of a larger scheme involving Auditor Lewis and Deputy Auditor Felkey, with Gobrecht and Slater acting in concert to publicly defame Fankhauser for denying the leave. He argues that statements made to local media, including press releases and interviews, falsely portrayed him as creating a hostile work environment—claims Fankhauser, the author of a YouTube video where he can be seen blowing kisses and singing "Can't Help Myself" to a subordinate, disputes.
He further alleges that delaying the appointment of a new Clerk was an intentional effort to burden him administratively, and argues that he is not legally required to fill in during the vacancy.
Fankhauser is requesting declaratory judgment on multiple legal questions, an injunction blocking any payment to Wise, and monetary damages for reputational harm.
The case has been assigned docket number 25CV06183 and is pending before the Crawford County Court of Common Pleas. Time will tell whether the court views this as a legitimate legal matter—or just another ego-fueled HR meltdown wrapped in a lawsuit.
