Former city worker claims she was fired for raising ethics concerns about Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg's wife

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A former Metro government employee claims in a whistleblower lawsuit filed Wednesday that she was fired after reporting suspected ethics violations by Mayor Craig Greenberg's wife in connection with the first lady's role in city government.

Samantha Ricketts, who worked as a graphic specialist in the mayor's office, alleges in the Jefferson Circuit Court filing that she was terminated after raising concerns about Rachel Greenberg asking Ricketts to do work for her.

The suit, submitted by Ricketts attorney Thomas Clay, also claims Greenberg made false statements in his response to an ethics complaint over his wife's work, including that Rachel Greenberg "made no substantive decisions" on graphic design projects.

"First Lady Rachel Greenberg did make 'substantive decisions' and gave instructions directly to Plaintiff Ricketts," the suit says.

In a statement, Mayor Greenberg said the "allegations in the case have no legal merit" and called Ricketts "a disgruntled former employee held over from the prior administration who was seemingly unable to work well with our new administration."

Greenberg also said Ricketts was not terminated; her position was eliminated because the city did not need a full-time graphic specialist in the mayor's office. He claims Ricketts was offered another job that she declined, "instead choosing to seek out an undeserved and lucrative payout through this unfounded legal battle."

In her timeline of events attached to the lawsuit, Ricketts said she didn't pursue that offer because of "the administration's mistreatment of me" and claimed the job opportunity in the parks department was floated on her last day with city government.

"Trying to force me to give an immediate answer during an extremely stressful and traumatic time is unreasonable and unacceptable and just another tactic they're attempting to use to bully me," Ricketts' timeline says.

The lawsuit alleges the city violated the Kentucky Whistleblower Act and seeks a jury trial and unspecified monetary and other damages.

The suit references the ethics complaint filed against Greenberg last fall by Malcomb Haming, a former executive director of the Jefferson County Republican Party. Haming's complaint was in response to Courier Journal stories on Rachel Greenberg's actions in her husband's administration and an internship program. Greenberg, a Democrat, took office in early 2023.

Haming cited the newspaper's reporting in his complaint, arguing that Craig Greenberg violated the city's ethics code by using his position as mayor to "secure unwarranted privileges or advantages" in the SummerWorks program for young people and their families who contributed to his political campaign.

Haming also alleged nepotism violations in connection with Rachel Greenberg's work in city government. The CJ reported in September that the mayor's wife had a Metro Hall office and official city email account and "gives orders to Metro Hall staffers."

The complaint was filed around the time the mayor announced last October that he was pulling $40 million in federal grant funding for a nonprofit at the heart of the ethics case involving Republican Metro Council member Anthony Piagentini. At that announcement, Craig Greenberg told reporters that the complaint "appears to be a purposely timed distraction."

The mayor denied any wrongdoing in his formal response to Haming's complaint, including that his wife was "hired" as defined in the ethics code, made decisions, used city resources or managed others. He described the first lady as "an unpaid volunteer working on projects that serve the public interest."

In his statement in response to Ricketts' lawsuit, Craig Greenberg said Louisville is "fortunate to have Rachel – a compassionate, loving and kind First Lady who is committed to making an impact by volunteering with schools, children and families throughout Louisville who welcome her with open arms and smiles. Rachel leads by example and neither she, nor I, will be deterred by these hateful, false and recycled allegations that have no purpose other than to cause harm. We’re going to continue to focus on what matters: Making Louisville a safer, stronger and healthier city for everyone."