By ,

Madison — A federal official who has long sat in judgment of disability claimants reduced them to racist and sexual tag lines such as "gorilla-like" and "buxom" in his case notes, according to copies of those forms and whistleblower interviews.

The conduct of administrative law judge John H. Pleuss toward his own co-workers and applicants for disability payments and their representatives raises questions not only about his official decisions but also about whether proper oversight is being exercised at the federal Social Security Administration's Madison Office of Disability Adjudication and Review.

An inspector general's investigation has been opened into issues in the administration's Madison office, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has learned. Pleuss has temporarily stopped hearing cases here but has not been put on leave and was in the office on Friday, a union official said.

"Young, white, female; long brown hair; attractive; looks innocent," reads one of Pleuss' handwritten hearing notes about a claimant in the form's "overall appearance" portion.

"Very black, African looking woman (actually a gorilla-like appearance)," Pleuss wrote of another claimant.

Pleuss' hearing notes and instructions to others were obtained by the Journal Sentinel and then shown to people who have worked in the office who verified they were notes that were written by Pleuss in recent years and then were scanned into electronic case files by other staff.

Machelle Keller, a lead case technician and one of those who confirmed the case notes are genuine, said she is facing retaliation from SSA management for speaking to the press and a Senate committee about the "toxic" work environment in the Madison office. Keller also testified in a whistleblower complaint about Pleuss' conduct, including his treatment of his co-workers, and about retaliation against whistleblowers by Laura Hodorowicz, the Madison office director.

In addition, an armed security guard has sat in a cubicle among the Madison office employees since June 20 to ensure safety in the office, said Keller and another source who spoke to the Journal Sentinel on the condition of anonymity.

Keller said SSA employees have been ordered not to speak to the media and to direct questions to the administration's regional headquarters in Chicago.

Pleuss has not received any apparent discipline for his comments, which were first reported by the conservative website Wisconsin Watchdog in June, besides being asked not to hold hearings or sign decisions for a two-week period, according to Marilyn Zahm, president of the Association of Administrative Law Judges.

The federal union represents about 1,300 judges around the country, including Pleuss, who also serves as his office's local union representative. If a person seeking Social Security disability payments has received multiple unfavorable decisions, he or she can appeal and have an in-person hearing on the claim before one of these administrative law judges.

Pleuss can't respond to interview requests from the Journal Sentinel, Zahm said.

She acknowledged that Pleuss should not have used the language that appeared in his notes, which can be seen by other SSA employees but not the public. She said Pleuss doesn't discriminate against claimants based on their race or appearance.

"Judge Pleuss regrets ever writing these notes," Zahm said.

Doug Nguyen, the SSA's regional spokesman, said that the agency cannot discuss personnel matters, but it is taking the claims seriously.

"We will not tolerate harassment, retaliation or other wrongdoing, and we take aggressive steps to investigate reports of inappropriate or illegal activity and address any findings," Nguyen said in an email.

The SSA's Office of Inspector General also could not comment on any possible investigation, spokesman Andrew Cannarsa said.

Zahm said she knows Pleuss personally and is saddened "that his name would be dragged through the mud, because I don't think he deserves it." She praised his conduct around her at conferences and said he has served in the Peace Corps in Ghana and worked for the Indiana Civil Rights Commission.

Zahm said the notes by Pleuss were "shorthand descriptions" that were meant to be used by him alone to jog his memory. They had been "taken out of context," she said, but did not offer any appropriate context for the quotes.

Other comments Pleuss has written in his hearing notes about applicants and their attorneys include observations that a white, female claimant "looks like a man," another "obese, young" white female was wearing a "skimpy black top" and a "young, black female" was "obese" and "buxom."

"I'll pay this lady when hell freezes over!" Pleuss also wrote in one of the documents.

Keller said that judges usually document applicants' characteristics that would be relevant to their disability claims — for example, if an individual had to use a wheelchair or cane, if he or she struggles to form sentences or if he or she is missing a limb.

"You don't need to have 'ape-like appearance' in order to remember that claimant," Keller said. "It's totally inappropriate."

Zahm gave examples from her own service as a judge in which she wrote down characteristics related to a disability or apparent lack of one, but could not give an example where she had noted a claimant's physical attractiveness.

Keller said she cannot confirm whether Pleuss' views of women and people of color affected his rulings on their cases.

But, Keller said, "why would you have to write something like that if it wasn't swaying you one way or the other?"

Keller also said Pleuss has hugged her in a way that makes her feel uncomfortable.

"I used to have to say, 'My eyes are up here,' as did a bunch of other (women) in the office," she told the Journal Sentinel.

Rebecca Salawdeh, a Wauwatosa attorney who handles federal employment disputes, said she has represented long-term federal employees who were fired "for far less" than what Pleuss is said to have done.

If the allegations are true, she said, "there's no reason why (Pleuss) shouldn't be fired."

Keller said SSA management has taken negative actions against her since she has begun speaking out about Pleuss, including revoking her work-at-home privileges and sending representatives from the Office of Inspector General to her home the week after Wisconsin Watchdog first reported her allegations.

So far, Keller said, she has reached out to a number of governmental entities for help since November.

In May, Keller also filed a complaint with the U.S. Senate's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and contacted the committee's chairman, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.). She received a prompt call back from a staffer.

After the SSA declined to answer questions from the committee about any actions taken against Keller and other whistleblowers without a formal request from Johnson, he submitted a letter June 14 to acting SSA Commissioner Carolyn Colvin requesting the information.

Keller sought additional help from the office of Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) but did not receive as much follow-up.

John Kraus, Baldwin's communications director, said Baldwin has followed up on Keller's request and contacted the Office of Special Counsel to express interest in the complaint.

Keller said she has doubts about whether the SSA will address any of her complaints and those of the other whistleblowers about Pleuss, or cease what she views as retaliation.

"I'm hoping, but, you know, I've hoped for a while, and they just keep throwing stuff at me," she said. "They've had so many opportunities to fix this."

A JUDGE'S NOTES

Administrative law judge John H. Pleuss wrote these descriptions of claimants appearing before him:

■ "Young, white, female; long brown hair; attractive; looks innocent."

■ "Very black, African looking woman (actually a gorilla-like appearance)."