Commissioner proposed hearing on council candidate’s job status

PLANO — In what appeared to be a small victory for LGBT acceptance in this conservative stronghold, Collin County Commissioner Jerry Hoagland reportedly has backed off his alleged proposal to fire Teen Court coordinator Justin Nichols for being gay.

Nichols accused Hoagland of making the proposal in response to a March 14 article in Dallas Voice about Nichols’ bid to become the first-ever openly gay member of the Plano City Council. Nichols, who’s served as coordinator for Collin County’s Teen Court program since 2006, also said the article prompted circulation of an anonymous e-mail suggesting he’s unfit to work with youth because of his sexual orientation.

Justin Nichols

Nichols, who oversees about 200 Teen Court volunteers, said Hoagland requested that a discussion of his employment status be placed on the agenda for the commission’s April 15 meeting.

Hoagland didn’t respond to numerous phone calls and e-mails seeking comment. However, after the controversy became the subject of media attention, County Administrator Bill Bilyeu said Tuesday, April 1, that the agenda item had been pulled.

“Right now a discussion of Justin’s performance is not on the agenda,” Bilyeu said in an e-mail to Dallas Voice. “As of this morning, I don’t expect that it will be on the agenda.”

Jerry Hoagland

Bilyeu also said the media attention — which included articles on two consecutive days this week in The Dallas Morning News — prompted him to cancel a routine periodic review of Nichols’ performance that had been scheduled for Tuesday. Nichols’ last performance review in September gave him favorable marks.

It’s still possible a discussion of Nichols’ employment status will be on the agenda for the April 15 meeting, which doesn’t’ have to be finalized until three days beforehand. But Nichols said Wednesday that Hoagland’s apparent decision to pull the item represented “a victory in that this will allow me to keep talking with Plano voters about the issues important to them.”

In a letter to Bilyeu dated March 27, Nichols called for any discussion of his employment status to be conducted publicly.

“This is not a time for dirty politics; this is a time to be up front, open and honest with the people of Collin County,” Nichols told Dallas Voice.

Despite Nichols’ request, the commission could try to discuss the issue behind closed doors under exceptions to open meetings requirements for personnel matters and pending litigation. Nichols confirmed Wednesday that he’s retained legal counsel.

Although there are no local or state laws prohibiting job discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, a local gay rights attorney said unlike in the private sector, government employees are covered by the equal protection clause of the Constitution. Ken Upton, a senior staff attorney in Lambda Legal’s Dallas office, said some media reports have erroneously suggested otherwise.

“I hope the county attorney is smart enough to tell him [Hoagland] what the law is,” Upton said. “The bottom line is that you can’t fire someone from a government job just because they’re gay. We moved past that a long time ago.”

Bilyeu suggested there may be other reasons for discussing Nichols’ employment status, including the possibility that his candidacy for City Council violates policies in the county employee handbook related to “moonlighting,” or holding a second job, and political involvement. But Nichols said there are other county officials who already serve in city governments.

“I’m not the only person who‘s politically involved in this county,” Nichols said.

Bilyeu also expressed frustration that the controversy is being played out in the press.

“It seems like every business discussion I’ve had with or about Justin seems to immediately appear in the media,” Bilyeus said. “His review, like every other employee, does not need to immediately be discussed in the public arena.”

Nichols said he hasn’t initiated any of the media coverage.

“All of my phone calls to the media have been responsive and not proactive,” he said.

Indeed, it was Dallas Voice that contacted Nichols about his candidacy in March after he was endorsed by the Washington, D.C.-based Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund. The Victory Fund, the nation’s largest LGBT political action committee, only endorses openly gay candidates.

Despite the ensuing controversy, Nichols said he doesn’t regret seeking the Victory Fund’s endorsement or granting an interview to Dallas Voice for the article. Nichols said he came out as gay when he was 16.

“I’ve always been open and honest about who I am, and I’m going to be honest with the people of Plano,” he said.

The Dallas Voice article focused on how, in addition to being the first openly gay member of the Plano City Council, Nichols would be the youngest person to serve on the body. Nichols, now 23, said his sexual orientation never became an issue when he unsuccessfully ran for a seat on the Plano school board when he was just 18.

Nichols said a link to the Dallas Voice article was included in the anonymous e-mail sent out two weeks ago. The e-mail appeared to be a politically motivated attack against County Commissioner Phyllis Cole, who faces a Republican Primary runoff for her seat on April 8. According to Nichols, the e-mail stated, “Look who Phyllis appointed to work with your kids.”

Cole, who helped create the countywide Teen Court program in response to a proposal from Nichols, has said she believes the e-mail was intended to motivate evangelical Christian voters. Cole accused her opponent in the runoff, Matt Shaheen, of being behind the attack. However, both Shaheen and Nichols’ opponent in the May 10 City Council election, Pat Miner, have denied any involvement.

Contacted this week, Cole declined further comment.

“I’m shocked that we’re having this debate in 2008, but perhaps it’s a debate that we need to have here in our community,” Nichols said. “The biggest surprise is the cowardice of the original e-mail. As far as I’m concerned, it was someone hiding behind anonymity who is a fear-mongerer and a coward.”

Although Collin County is regarded as one of the most conservative metropolitan areas in the country, Nichols said he’s received an overwhelming show of support since the controversy broke.

“I’ve had an outpouring of support from parents, from co-workers, from teens and from community members,” he said. “I think our society and our community has moved to a place where we’re judging people on their merits. There are people who are behind the times, and I’m ready to bring them up to speed.”



This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition April 4, 2008.