Nabholz, Skeen and Krout found a sympathetic ear with the Army's Denver advisory council. That group, made up of retirees Stewart Swanson, Eugene Peters and Wayne Wood, was appalled by the stories it heard from the fired trio and from other present and former employees. In February the councilmen fired off a letter to Army Commissioner Peter Chang at the Territorial Headquarters in California, warning that the rehab center "is now in an increasing state of disarray as the current leadership becomes more bold and wanton in its near-tyrannical operations." They also asked that Chang send two high-ranking officers to Denver to meet with them and discuss the situation.
The councilmen specifically asked that Delaney and Starrett not be sent to discuss the matter, as they felt those two had violated the agreement to keep employees' comments confidential following the November review. Chang sent Starrett anyway. And though the council was pleased that someone listened, it was distressed that nothing was done after Starrett's visit. On March 1, Peters and Swanson penned another letter to Chang, this time requesting that Jack Phillips be removed from his position in Denver "immediately" upon his return from a tour of Russia.
Three weeks later, Peters and Swanson appeared to change their tune. Rather than insisting on Phillips's immediate departure, they wrote, they had been persuaded by Starrett and retired Salvation Army Lieutenant Colonel David Allen that "such an off-the-normal-schedule move would draw unwanted attention to a Salvation Army transfer." The two also noted in their letter that Starrett had told them that other Denver center employees were pleased with the Phillipses.
The ink on that conciliatory letter was barely dry when, Swanson says, he realized he'd been right the first time. "To pacify them, we thought that perhaps it wouldn't be necessary for him to leave immediately, but that if he left in June, at the end of the rotation, that would be all right," he says. "But when I got home and I wasn't under any pressure, I reread the letter and decided that I had nothing to apologize for."
Peters says he believes the matter will be taken care of when the Salvation Army makes its traditional June transfers (councilmember Wood did not return phone calls). "From all I've gotten," Peters says, "I'm sure [Phillips] is on his way out." (Jack Phillips says he has not been told when--or if--he and his wife must leave Denver.)
A simple transfer for the Phillipses, however, won't be good enough for Tom Nabholz. He says he doesn't want the Salvation Army to move the problem along with the Phillipses. According to attorney Culver, Nabholz intends to seek back pay and compensation for economic, emotional and punitive damages.
"I've been practicing employment law for quite a while," adds Seth Benezra, "and I've never seen a case so outrageous. It's despicable--especially for a church-based organization.
