Half an hour after John Ludlow and Tootie Smith were sworn in as Clackamas County commissioners, they walked into the office of the county's head administrator and – without consulting the other three commissioners – handed him a letter calling for his resignation.

Documents released at the request of The Oregonian show that Ludlow drafted the letter with assistance from two attorneys, Lester V. Smith, an employment law specialist Ludlow recruited "to represent me in this matter," and Scot Sideras, assistant county counsel. Sideras subsequently lost his job over the incident and faces state bar and state ethics complaints.

The private attorney joined the two commissioners for their meeting with County Administrator Steve Wheeler.

The two-page letter accused Wheeler of improper budget transfers, inadequate oversight and poor professional judgment, citing examples of each. "Whether these are the sum total of your failures, or just the tip of the iceberg, my confidence in you has been seriously shaken," Ludlow wrote. "Please tender your resignation."

Behind the scenes, Sideras had been angling for Wheeler's job. In November, Sideras sent Ludlow a cover letter and resume touting his legal and managerial expertise. A Jan. 6 email exchange shows that Sideras reviewed a draft of Ludlow's letter a day before it was presented to Wheeler.

Ludlow confirmed Thursday that the draft letter released to The Oregonian was the version he delivered to Wheeler. The letter indicated that Ludlow sent copies to The Oregonian and Clackamas Review newspapers, but that didn't happen. "The fact of the matter is that I didn't send that out," Ludlow said Thursday. "I am going to retain for my own reasons why I didn't at that time."

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Tootie Smith did not respond to calls for comment on her actions.

Ludlow's Jan. 6 email to the attorneys he consulted included Wheeler's contract, along with those of six other administrators, including County Counsel Stephen Madkour, who was Sideras' boss. Wheeler and Madkour are the only county employees who report directly the county board of commissioners.

The other contracts were for Commission Policy Coordinator Emily Klepper, Deputy County Administrator Nancy Newton, Water Environment Services Director Mike Kuenzi, Family Court Services Director Lauren MacNeill and Public and Government Affairs Director Gary Schmidt. Ludlow said Thursday he was concentrating only on Wheeler's contract.

Ludlow acknowledged that he planned Wheeler's ouster without consulting commissioners Martha Schrader, Jim Bernard and Paul Savas and informed them only after taking action. "It was immediately after," Ludlow said. "I did not keep it from them. But I did not inform them in advance."

Bernard said he learned of Ludlow and Smith's actions later in their first day in office and objected.

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"I said I support Steve Wheeler. I think he's done a fine job, and I wouldn't be supporting him on replacing Mr. Wheeler," Bernard said, adding that they should have involved the whole board before acting. "Since we never had a meeting on this issue, no it was not the right process," Bernard said.

When Wheeler later resigned, in a settlement that calls for about $120,000 in severance pay and benefits, Ludlow spoke of him favorably and continues to call him a gentleman and professional. Wheeler is acting county administrator until the board chooses a new one.

"I am very happy with the job he's doing," Ludlow said. "I am pleased he is remaining as interim. Contrary to what might be posed in the press, Mr. Wheeler and I have a very good relationship and we get a lot done. This is old business."

In his letter calling for Wheeler's resignation, Ludlow makes several serious charges, such as improperly diverting funds to construct a county building. Ludlow said he is not pursuing legal action or investigations into any of the allegations contained in the letter.

One month after the letter was delivered, Madkour fired Sideras and, weeks later, filed complaints against him with the Oregon State Bar and Oregon Government Ethics Commission, alleging that Sideras used information obtained through his position "for his personal gain and to the impairment and prejudice of a current client." The bar complaint included a four-page handwritten "how-to" memo from Sideras on "Getting S.W. gone," an apparent reference to Steve Wheeler.

Sideras' handwritten notes, included in the bar complaint, echo the issues raised in Ludlow's letter to Wheeler. On Thursday, Sideras said he made the notes in response to questions from Ludlow about county management problems and did not advocate forcing Wheeler out. "What we have to understand is I am not the only person John talked to during this time," Sideras said.

Sideras' handwritten memo, which is not dated or signed, also indicates he strategized about squeezing other commissioners, apparently including Savas, to get onboard. Under the heading "What could go wrong?" one note says "Have not got Paul's vote – Force Paul's hand – happened under your watch. Not part of the solution, part of problem."

Savas ran against Ludlow for the chairman position in the 2012 primary. Both Sideras and Ludlow maintain that their actions were ethical.

In turn, Ludlow criticized County Counsel Madkour for filing the ethics and bar complaints against Sideras without the commissioners' consent. Madkour said in the email when he notified the board that he has a professional obligation as a bar-certified attorney to report possible wrongdoing by another member of the bar. County staff declined to comment for this story because the Sideras case is an employee matter.

A week after the news of the bar and ethics complaint broke, Ludlow asked that Madkour have a performance evaluation; he has never had an evaluation performed by the board in the past two years he worked for the county.

The evaluation is yet to be scheduled.

The county has launched a national search to find Wheeler's successor.

-- Molly Harbarger: 503-294-5923