Story by Angela Couloumbis of Spotlight PA
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HARRISBURG — A high-level Pennsylvania Department of Aging staffer claims the agency is retaliating against him for being a whistleblower and raising alarms about the state’s failures in protecting older adults from abuse and neglect. He’s now notified top Shapiro administration officials that he intends to sue.
In a demand letter sent to Gov. Josh Shapiro and other high-ranking officials late last week, Aging Services Supervisor Richard Llewellyn alleges department brass thwarted his efforts to assist investigations by outside agencies, including the Office of State Inspector General, into the quality of older adult protective services around Pennsylvania.
Llewellyn also alleges that top department officials purposely suppressed or manipulated data to shield problems when responding to public records requests. One top aging official, Llewellyn contends, even bragged about his ability to exploit loopholes to dodge having to turn over complete and accurate data.
When he objected to and later reported the alleged wrongdoing to other state officials, Llewellyn said he was subjected to a “campaign of retaliation,” including targeted administrative complaints and investigations. He said he was also stripped of...
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