Atlanta HR commissioner fired after audit found she ‘abused her power,’ hired daughter

ATLANTA — The City of Atlanta Human Resources Commissioner was fired, effective immediately, in the wake of a city auditor’s investigation finding she abused her power to give her daughter a job.

In a statement from the Mayor’s Office, a spokesman said Tarlesha Smith was terminated following the city’s Department of Law investigation into allegations of misconduct by the HR Commissioner.

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Channel 2 Action News reported in May that Smith had been suspended after an investigation began, and an investigation report showed she had launched an investigation into one of the city’s human resources supervisors after they tried to fire her daughter.

The inspector general’s report from the investigation said Smith’s daughter did not go through a normal hiring process to get her job with the city. Instead, Smith’s daughter didn’t have to interview, did not meet the minimum job requirements, and may have even lied on her resume.

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The report also said the commissioner’s daughter received an offer letter before the position had even been posted for other candidates to apply.

After her hiring, the report said Smith’s daughter was often late for work or missed entire days, and when a supervisor tried to terminate her, Smith began investigating them, leading to complaints of retaliation.

Ultimately, that complaint led to the investigation into Smith, and now, her firing from the city’s top HR job.

“The Law investigation led to the determination that Commissioner Smith engaged in misconduct, including having abused her power by encouraging preferential treatment for her daughter in the hiring and execution of her duties as Compliance Analyst in the City of Atlanta Office of the Solicitor, and subsequent adverse action against her daughter’s direct supervisor,” a letter from the Mayor’s Office to the Atlanta City Council said. “Accordingly, Commissioner Smith’s employment with the City of Atlanta has been terminated, effective immediately.”

While the city searches for Smith’s full-time replacement, Calvin Blackburn, Esq. will take on her role as the Interim Human Resources Commissioner.

The Mayor’s Office said the search for Smith’s replacement will have a national scope to find her permanent successor.

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