Greene out as PHA boss amid sexual-harassment woes

THERE WERE two Carl Greenes - the brilliant but maniacal housing executive and the lecherous boss who pursued female employees and then allegedly harassed them out of the Philadelphia Housing Authority.

The collision of the two personas created a career-crushing scandal that cost Greene his job yesterday.

"He's a flawed genius. He is like a great athlete with a drug problem. He's the Tiger Woods of public housing," PHA board chairman John Street said.

"He has a fundamental character flaw that will forever obscure his work as the greatest executive in the history of the Philadelphia Housing Authority."

With that, PHA's five-member Board of Commissioners - headed by former Mayor Street - approved a resolution, 4-1, to immediately fire Greene.

Board member and Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell, an ardent Greene supporter, was the lone "nay" vote. Blackwell said she felt the board's action was premature and deprived Greene of his right to "due process."

Greene will no longer receive his $306,370 salary, Street said.

Greene's attorney, Clifford Haines, blasted Street and attacked the board's monthlong internal investigation, which primarily focused on sexual-harassment complaints against Greene.

"At a certain level, Carl Greene has become a victim, too," Haines said at a news conference yesterday. "His reputation has been destroyed by this."

Greene has publicly denied the sexual-harassment allegations. Even so, Street never reached out to Greene to get his side, Haines asserted.

In a report leaked to news media Wednesday, the board's investigation concluded that Greene was "a serial sexual harasser" who "mentally tortured, physically assaulted, and professionally damaged" four female staffers.

Greene's "modus operandi" was to dangle raises and promotions before the women, then "explicitly maintain that the only way that the subject of his unwanted attention could obtain said raise and promotion was to have sex with him," the report states.

The report says that Greene engaged in a conspiracy to conceal four sexual-harassment claims, and names four high-ranking PHA officials who, "under duress," helped Greene cover up the claims and deceive the board.

Haines called the report "offensive," saying Street seems to have a "vendetta" against Greene.

"This is not an independent report," Haines said. "This is a report that was orchestrated by John Street."

Haines said that Street, a lawyer, is acting "way outside the bounds of ethics" by publicly airing sexual-harassment allegations that should be handled in a courtroom, not on a "street corner." Haines said he intends to complain about Street to the disciplinary board of the state Supreme Court.

"Maybe he just wants to be a politician and not a lawyer . . . but he can't hold a license to practice law and act the way he's acting," Haines said.

Greene, who is undergoing medical treatment at an undisclosed facility, has sued the board in federal court. He claims the board ruined his reputation and moved to fire him without cause. The suit seeks two years' pay.

But Greene's fight is just beginning:

* Street said he hopes to hire veteran attorney and legal lion Richard Sprague to defend the board against Greene's suit. The board intends to go after Greene to recoup "every dime" that he "illegally spent" to secretly settle sex-harassment complaints against him, Street vowed.

* Greene is at the center of an expanding federal grand-jury investigation led by the U.S. Attorney's Office. Federal authorities are probing allegations that Greene and his executive staff improperly solicited cash and gifts from PHA employees and vendors. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of Inspector General is also investigating PHA's use of federal funds.

* Greene now faces an onslaught of civil lawsuits filed by former and current PHA employees, alleging that he forced them to fork over $2.50 from their weekly paychecks and retaliated against those who challenged or questioned him.

Yesterday, Mayor Nutter stressed that firing Greene should not absolve the board of further scrutiny.

"There are many still seemingly unanswered questions with the board, its monitoring and oversight," Nutter said. "Maybe the HUD or the U.S. attorney's investigation will reveal more details to the board's involvement or responsibility. I do not think this action today ends this chapter."

Nutter is limited in the action he can take over the PHA board. The board structure - unique to Philadelphia - does not provide the mayor with any direct oversight.

The PHA board has five appointees - two from the mayor, two from the city controller and a tenant representative appointed by the other board members. Street and Blackwell - appointed before Nutter took office - occupy the mayoral seats. Blackwell's term has expired, so Nutter could replace her. But Street's term runs until next September.

Nutter said he was troubled by Blackwell's decision to vote against firing Greene.

"I will say that, given all that has happened and all the reports that are out there, I am deeply disappointed and deeply troubled that Councilwoman Blackwell would vote the way she did," Nutter said.

Nutter said he needs to have a conversation with Blackwell regarding her future on the board before coming to any decisions.

Staff writer Barbara Laker contributed to this report.