Yearwood says ‘no’ to attending anger class

In his Jan. 27 report, Archer said Yearwood’s temper problem was the only complaint filed by Human Resources Director Norma Jean Brown for which he found strong corroboration.

Archer said the county chairman’s conduct toward Brown at a private meeting last October – in which she says Yearwood also cursed her, but Archer could not corroborate – was a violation of the Barrow County Policy Manual prohibiting conduct that is offensive to employees.

Archer noted in his report: “Several interviewees told me of incidents when Chairman Yearwood lost his temper and yelled at them, but this has happened with both males and females, and it does appear that Chairman Yearwood speaks to employees (and some Commissioners) in angry, harsh tones.”

ANOTHER HE-SAID, SHE-SAID
Archer’s report does not state how many of his 34 interviewees agreed that Yearwood displays his temper during confrontations. But both Yearwood supporters and detractors reportedly acknowledged the problem.

Less than a week after the commissioners on Feb. 9 voted to accept the investigator’s report, Yearwood was reportedly involved in another heated exchange with an employee.

This time, however, the female employee’s boss, Sheriff Jud Smith, not only witnessed the incident, but also stepped between her and Yearwood in order to defuse the situation.

Smith said told the Barrow Journal that the incident happened Feb. 15, after Yearwood called him to the Roads & Fleet Department, where Deputy Andra Bush had gone to collect information from the driver of a county dump truck that three days earlier had damaged some parked cars while spreading rock salt because of snowfall.

Smith said that when he arrived at the department in response to Yearwood’s call, he could tell the chairman was angry.

He said Yearwood questioned why multiple deputies had arrived at the 911 the previous Friday and expressed displeasure about the deputy’s questioning of county employees. Smith said Yearwood also complained about a comment the deputy allegedly made.

“Her statement was, ‘I don’t work for Danny Yearwood. I work for the Sheriff. That’s why I need to get the information'.”

Smith said Yearwood got angry at the fact that she made that comment. "He got aggravated. He claimed she said, ‘I don’t work for damn Danny Yearwood.’ She said she didn’t cuss. He got angry, started yelling.”

Smith said he stepped between the chairman and the deputy.

“I had to tell him that’s my employee. I told him I would deal with her – she doesn’t work for him. I told her to just go on. There was no sense in her having to sit there and listen to him," Smith said. “Danny said, ‘She does work for you and I understand that, but your checks come from us'.”

Sheriff Smith said Bush denied having cursed.

“I trust that the deputy didn’t make the comment the way he said she said it,” Smith said. “She said, ‘not one time did I say that'.”

The entire incident was blown out of proportion, Smith said.

NO ACTION TUESDAY NIGHT
Yearwood did not respond to a request for an interview about the Feb. 15 incident.

And though there had been some indication that the BOC on Tuesday night might take further action in the wake of the investigator’s recommendation regarding Yearwood, none was taken.

The full board, including the chairman, met for about 45 minutes in a closed session at the end of the board’s regular meeting to discuss litigation.

At the end of the closed session, the commissioners adjourned.