Hawaii 24/7 Staff

Three terminated employees from the County Elections Office have released their settlement offer to the public.

At a press conference outside the County Council chambers, attorney Ted Hong said Council members Dominic Yagong, Brenda Ford, Pete Hoffmann and Brittany Smart, who voted against the settlement offer, were letting their pride and political ambition drive their decision making.

The terms of the settlement were substantially lower than the $500,000 Hong requested for each terminated employee.

“My clients are keenly aware that whether there was a jury award or settlement, all the funds spent on this case would come from taxpayers,” Hong said.

The former employees simply wanted their job back, to clear their names and a modest amount to pay for the humiliation they information was leaked to the media.

“We know that every nickel, every dime spent on this case from today forward comes from the taxpayers so my clients did not want to burden their neighbors and friends in these tough economic times,” Hong said.

Hong said Yagong, Ford, Hoffman, and Smart are willing to gamble with the taxpayers money and their judgment is in doubt by rejecting such a modest settlement agreement.

“They are poor stewards of the taxpayers money and they should be held accountable for covering their mistakes with our tax dollars,” Hong said.

Hong said the four council members have left the former employees no choice but to file a lawsuit.