Several Pima County employees accused former county treasurer Brian Johnson of sexual misconduct before his resignation in mid-June.
According to complaints sent to HR and published by the Tucson Sentinel and Arizona Daily Star, Johnson and his girlfriend allegedly had a relationship with a female employee and he sent texts with explicit material. It was also reported that he touched himself inappropriately while talking to others, decorated his office with nude paintings and licked an employee’s face while trying to kiss her.
Jake Martin is Pima County’s chief deputy treasurer who worked closely with Johnson before he resigned. Martin tells AZPM the primary complainant told him, in January, that the 70-year-old treasurer had invited her out on dates and that he made inappropriate comments to her.
He says it was “a big surprise” and “disturbing” to hear. Martin says that although he wanted to report the complaints right away, the complainant feared for her job security at the time.
For more than three years, Martin was the CEO of a sexual assault awareness organization called Survivor Shield. He says that experience informed his approach after hearing the allegations.
“My top priority was to respect the wishes of the victim in this case and to ensure that we were able to meet her needs and do everything that we could to support her — whether that was changing a schedule so she wasn't in the room with Brian, or making sure that she was never alone with him,” he says.
Johnson did not deny the allegations in an interview with the Sentinel, but says some of the encounters were consensual.
“We continued to monitor the situation. We continued to document everything that the treasurer was doing towards that employee so that if it did escalate, there would be evidence of a pattern, that this had been happening continuously. Of course, it did ultimately escalate significantly and it got to a point where there was no choice but to bring in administration and bring in human resources,” Martin says.
Martin says Johnson was not aware of the HR investigation against him until a few days before he resigned. He says he encouraged Johnson to “deal with the consequences of his actions” the day before he resigned.
“I told him I believed it was in his best interest and in the best interest of the department for him to resign,” Martin says.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors is accepting applications for a new treasurer. At a July 14 meeting, the board will vote to appoint the new treasurer, who would serve through 2028, when Johnson’s term is set to end. Martin has applied to replace Johnson as treasurer.
Johnson also accused County Administrator Jan Lesher and County Assessor Suzanne Droubie of conspiring to oust him from office, a claim that both of them deny alongside Martin.
Steve Jess contributed to this article.
