Capital News: Dann loves his grandma, but not 'onions or sprouts'

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by Marc Kovac

Capital Bureau Chief

The great clearinghouse of "the people's records" that is Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann's office recently released upward of 2,000 e-mail messages between the Democratic office-holder and an allegedly sweatsuit-wearing scheduler.

The stash had us media types drooling over possible scandal and hoped-for prurient details that would add to the saga involving a top aide, a top spokesman, a couple of potentially harassed underlings and excessive drinking.

A quick recap: Two employees, Cindy Stankoski and Vanessa Stout, have alleged sexual harassment by Anthony Gutierrez, Dann's general services director (plus a friend, neighbor and former roommate of the Attorney General).

In interviews with investigators, the two 26-year-old women described incidents in which Gutierrez, 50, made inappropriate comments that were sexual in nature.

Stankoski also described an evening of drinking with Gutierrez, who later took her to the Columbus-area residence he shared with Dann and Leo Jennings, the attorney general's communications director. She woke up the next morning in his bed with her pants unbuttoned and Gutierrez in his underwear, according to documents.

Gutierrez was placed on paid administrative leave earlier this month. Jennings later was placed on paid administrative leave, though a reason was not specified. An investigation being spearheaded by Executive Assistant Attorney General Ben Espy and Assistant Attorney General Julie Pfeiffer is nearly complete, and findings could be out within the week.

In the meantime, reporters have been placing public records requests and digging for more details. The e-mails released last week have turned up some banter that could be considered a little too informal or inappropriate, but not a lot else.

Though reading through them does makes some things about the Attorney General clear:

* Marc Dann likes to have a wheat bagel with light cream cheese for breakfast, purchased from "anywhere close to the office." He drinks "regular, not flavored, black" coffee -- size small, since he "never drinks it anyway."

* For lunch: a turkey, cheese, lettuce, tomato and mustard sandwich on a wheat bagel or wheat bread, with baked chips and a Diet Coke on the side. "No cookie" and "absolutely no onions or sprouts."

* He would prefer not to "eat [insert expletive here] from anyone else tonight."

* He loves his grandma. He can get to Ashtabula from Columbus in three hours. And he likes the Hyatt in Cleveland.

* Like a "punk," he sometimes doesn't answer his "text."

* He wears a paisley tie, and he got tickets to "Mary Poppins." He wonders if "the cat got his tongue."

* He likes to get his hair cut every five weeks at the Jacob Neal Salon. The sessions take a half hour, and sometimes they're all about "tension relief."

* Sometimes, he yells at staff in front of others, but apologizes for it later.

* He can be "so fricking mean" to "little mary sunshine." At times, he may be "carrying over other stuff," which prompts hurt and burned faces from too much crying.

* On occasion, he misspells Jewish holidays, like Rosh Hashanah and Hanukah, but he knows dreidels are spun on the latter.

* He has been known to tell the wrong people to do something with his schedule, which "allows them to continue to go behind our backs and create more problems," which is "crap."

* "Unresolved issues" and "defensive" people can cause his "anxiety level" to increase "dramatically."

Marc Kovac is the Dix Newspapers Capital Bureau chief. E-mail him at mkovac@dixcom.com.