Butler County Commissioner Jim Eckstein has accused county officials of falsifying incidents he had with a row officer and a county worker one day apart.

Eckstein said at the commissioners meeting Wednesday that his rights were violated after he became involved in an internal investigation into the conduct of a county human services employee.

He claimed the discrimination occurred during the process that led to last week’s firing of Laurie Kubli, a Children and Youth Services caseworker.

Eckstein said Michele Mustello, county recorder of deeds, tried to stop him from attending an Aug. 15 personnel meeting involving one of her workers.

“That’s why I almost got arrested,” Eckstein said.

He accused Mustello and personnel director Lori Altman of calling sheriff’s deputies to have him arrested on a false charge of assault.

No one was cited following the incident, which occurred about at 11 a.m. in the personnel office on the fifth floor of the government center.

Sheriff Mike Slupe said in an interview that his deputies told Eckstein he would face a disorderly conduct charge if his behavior continued to be disruptive and interfered with the meeting.

Altman, who is one of three people suing Eckstein for defamation, denied having anything to do with the deputies being called.

Mustello also refuted Eckstein’s comments. She said in an interview that the deputies were called to escort him from the meeting.

“I requested that an employee in personnel call the sheriff’s deputies in order to remove him from a meeting I didn’t feel he had the right to attend,” Mustello said.

Slupe said his deputies don’t have the authority to eject Eckstein from a meeting.

However, Slupe said he told Eckstein that if there was a personnel meeting involving one of the sheriff’s staff, Slupe would keep Eckstein from attending.

Eckstein maintains he has the right to attend any such meeting.

County solicitor Mike English agreed that a commissioner can attend personnel meetings.

“It is unusual,” English said. “It is unprecedented. However, there is no law against it.”

Mustello’s employee, who provided information about the situation involving Kubli, is not facing disciplinary action.

Eckstein said the Aug. 8 incident that led to Kubli’s firing centered on a custody case, which involved a county judge and a human services agency.

According to English, no county officials are permitted to speak about the reasons behind the firing.

Eckstein said when he entered the office to attend the Aug. 15 meeting, Mustello caused the accidental collision.

“She jumped in front of me and tripped me,” he said after the meeting Wednesday. Eckstein claimed Mustello blocked his way with her outstretched arms.

She refuted his account, saying her hands were up to separate Eckstein from other people going into the meeting.

“I was standing there very calmly,” Mustello said.

She said after turning, Eckstein bumped into her.

“I felt a push,” Mustello said.

She conceded that her first response was to ask if he pushed her, but later she realized it was accidental.

Mustello insisted the collision was not the reason she asked for the deputies.

“I didn’t need his interjections at the meeting,” she said.

The day before, Aug. 14, Eckstein went to the CYS office to get information on the hours Kubli worked the week of Aug. 8.

He said the CYS employee in the office refused to give him what he was seeking. Both Eckstein and the worker went to see CYS director Joyce Ainsworth and human services director Carmine Scotece.

Eckstein said they also refused to give him information he is entitled to see.

“I had to go to the solicitor to get it,” he said.

Scotece said in an interview there was a misunderstanding in what Eckstein was seeking.

“It wasn’t made clear to me,” Scotece said in an interview. “When he got there, he was pretty agitated.”

Scotece stressed he had no problem with Eckstein getting any information that isn’t confidential.

Under state and federal guidelines, information on human services clients is confidential.

No county official, including Eckstein, would confirm whether the CYS worker filed an internal complaint against him.

However, Commissioner Bill McCarrier accused Eckstein of mistreating the employee.

“He terrorized a Children and Youth employee,” McCarrier said.

Scotece spoke in general terms on how the commissioners and the county staff should interact.

“The department heads need to work with the commissioners,” he said. “The commissioners need to trust their managers.”

Eckstein pointed to a March 22, 2012, memo from McCarrier as proof there is discrimination against him, the sole Democrat commissioner.

The e-mail tells department heads to provide information to Eckstein if it is public information and reminds them they work for the board of commissioners, not one commissioner.

“He’s violating my rights,” Eckstein said about McCarrier, who subsequently laughed.

Eckstein chided McCarrier for laughing, saying the issue wasn’t funny. But McCarrier disagreed.

“I think it is,” McCarrier said. “It’s a lie.”

Eckstein also accused Commissioner Dale Pinkerton of orchestrating retaliatory action against Kubli.

After Pinkerton read the number of sick days Kubli took in 2009 at the Feb. 3, 2010 commissioners meeting, the Service Employees International Union filed a grievance.

The Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board later found the county guilty of unfair labor practices.

“She won,” Eckstein said. “She had a legitimate grievance. Now, I bet it’s retaliatory.”

Pinkerton denied there was any conspiracy. He criticized Eckstein for blaming other people after problems arise.

“It’s always someone else’s fault,” Pinkerton said.

He said Eckstein makes every issue about himself.

“All he can say is ‘I’ and ‘me,’” Pinkerton said.

Kubli, an employee representative for the SEIU, previously said a wrongful termination grievance would be filed against the county.

“We would not be surprised,” English said in an interview. “We will defend the termination action.”