Commissioner acting outside his responsibilities is not immune from liability

Azzam Elder sued a Wayne County Commissioner, alleging that the man secured his firing as Deputy County Executive in retaliation for Elder's investigating and criticizing a contract secured by the Commissioner's son.The Defendant, Bernard Parker, argued that he was entitled to governmental immunity for his actions in allegedly pressuring the County Executive to terminate Elder.  The trial judge and ultimately the Court of Appeals rejected the immunity defense, noting that since Parker's responsibilities did not include any "interference" or supervision of executive management, his alleged actions to spur Elder's termination were not protected by immunity.