Mayor Andy Berke said Friday that a third party vendor had vetted the background of a Guernsey, Wyoming woman who was chosen as Chattanooga city treasurer out of 60 applicants. Kate Farmer was placed on administrative leave after it was disclosed that she was named in three federal lawsuits.
“I don’t know that I have the exact details of how she was vetted,” said Mayor Berke. “I do know a background check was performed and I don’t know every other step.”
The mayor said that the background check was conducted by a third-party vendor.
He said the background check occurred around April 1. He said no person in the city was aware of Ms. Farmer’s involvement in the lawsuit.
“The most important thing for me is whether she committed any acts of misconduct,” said the mayor. ”The reasons she is on administrative leave is so we can find out whether she did commit any of those acts. If so, we will take appropriate action.”.
When asked if he believed there is a connection behind reopening and the increase in COVID-19 cases during the last few days, the Mayor did not confirm there is a connection. However, he did say that may be a factor in the increasing numbers.
“When you reopen and circulate more, then that increases the chance of more exposure,” said the mayor. “So part of what we know is that as you start to see more cases and there are reopenings, that means more of these individuals are going to be at work, at restaurants, and various locations.”
As he has said multiple times, the mayor asks all citizens to wear a mask, social distance, and to repeatedly wash their hands. And perhaps most crucially, to stay home unless they absolutely need to go out.
“We have to keep watching these cases, because we can’t let us get to the point where there is exponential growth in the cases,” said the mayor. “When they start doubling on a regular basis, you can really see a problem in your community.”
Mayor Berke said, “Businesses cannot survive a second round of closures. That would be devastating. So we have to be really careful about how we conduct ourselves and whether we expand the businesses.”
The mayor said he is focused on working with the governor during the reopening of Chattanooga.