BY DAN HILDEBRAN
Starke City Commissioner Bob Milner asked his colleagues to terminate the contract of the city’s Chief Administrative Officer, Jimmy Crosby, after accusing the former city clerk of creating a hostile work environment, not informing council members of his role in organizing a recreational advisory board, and falsifying election documents when he first registered to vote and when he qualified to run for city clerk.
Mayor Andy Redding and Commissioner Danny Nugent appeared ready to go along with Milner at the end of the commission’s Tuesday, May 6, meeting. However, City Attorney Danielle Addams advised Redding that their actions could create a financial liability for the municipality.
At Redding’s urging, Milner amended his motion to put Crosby on administrative leave until the lawyer had a chance to review Crosby’s contract and applicable city ordinances.
Nugent joined Redding and Milner in suspending Crosby. Janice Mortimer and Scott Roberts voted against the action, arguing that the motion deprived Crosby of due process.
Milner, reading from a prepared statement during commissioners’ presentations on topics of their choice, described Crosby as his 55-year good friend.
“We sang in the youth choir together, and recently, he and his brother provided me the honor of leading the music at the home-going service of their wonderful mother, Mrs. Helen Crosby,” Milner told his colleagues. “I appreciated that and the many good things Mr. Crosby has either initiated, some of which we’ve heard tonight, or been a major part of while representing the city the last couple of years. I believe most of his actions were well-intended. However, I do believe his management style has created a hostile work environment for many city employees. He’s been selective in what he shares with all commissioners versus a few, and unfortunately, he confessed to committing two criminal offenses by falsifying his voter registration application form and the qualification documents to run for city clerk.”
The final straw
Regarding the last accusation, Milner recounted a Florida Department of Law Enforcement raid on City Hall in February 2024. He said the raid and related investigation were launched by claims Crosby lied on qualifying documents before he was elected clerk, by falsely stating that he was not a convicted felon.
Milner said his accusations of a hostile work environment came from Starke employees who approached him confidentially, for fear of retribution from Crosby.
“I’ve been contacted by several city employees, not one or two but several over the last few months regarding their perception of Mr. Crosby’s management style,” said Milner. “These employees report that many city employees are walking on eggshells every day just to try and perform their duties because of what they consider harassing, intimidating, and in some cases threatening behavior by Mr. Crosby. “
Milner said the final straw for him was when employees told him Crosby instructed other workers to delay work in certain districts until after candidate qualifying time or until after the August city elections.
Redding, looking directly at Crosby, told the chief administrative officer that he had heard the same things from employees Milner had reported.
“That is a violation of the Whistleblower Act and a violation for us to protect our employees,” Redding told Crosby. “We cannot operate that way.”
Ashamed and embarrassed
Commissioner Janice Mortimer came to Crosby’s defense and launched her own attack on Milner.
“You have questioned this board and previous boards for…no apparent reason other than you just want people to think that you’re the smartest person here,” Mortimer told Milner. “And you have constantly, during every opportunity to speak at some point, reminded all of us of what you used to do as sheriff— “When I was sheriff and when I was city manager,’ which has no bearing on what we were facing or whatever the issue might be at the time.”
Mortimer asked Milner why he had not brought up the accusations earlier, even before he was elected to the city commission.
“You could have brought it before the board at that time,” she said, “but you chose to wait and sit here on your pedestal and grandstand, and I think that speaks volumes to the kind of person that you are, and I’m ashamed and embarrassed to be serving on the board with you.”
Mortimer then praised Crosby’s work performance, comparing the condition of the municipality’s operations favorably to when Milner was the city manager.
Mortimer also criticized Milner for not asking Crosby about the allegations before springing them on council members.
Crosby reiterated that complaint at the end of the meeting.
“No commissioner or person has discussed any of that with me prior to this meeting,” Crosby said of Milner’s accusations. “So, I want it on the record that my good friend would not even have the courtesy to come by and say, look, I’ve got a problem here.”
