The Port of Benton’s suspended executive director scored a win in a recent court order that determined the port must restart its investigation relating to her suspension. 

But the order may not last long: Port commissioners are seeking review from the court of appeals.

Benton County Superior Court Judge Norma Rodriguez ruled Sept. 17 on the matter, calling a halt to the current investigation into complaints against suspended Director Diahann Howard, while also mandating a new, neutral investigation be launched. 

Howard was put on administrative leave with pay on Jan. 7 while the port reviewed employee complaints against her. Howard maintains the suspension was an act of retaliation.

The port initially hired investigator Lisa Greenfield to look into both the employee complaints against Howard and her concerns about retaliation. Then the port paused that investigation in April as recall proceedings against its commissioners worked their way up to the state Supreme Court. 

When the port restarted the investigation in July, commissioners voted to have Goodstein Law Group provide “investigation oversight,” with port commission President Bill O’Neil listed as project manager. Attorney Carolyn Lake of Goodstein Law had previously defended commissioners in the recall proceedings. 

Howard sued in August with concerns that an investigation led by O’Neil and Lake couldn’t be neutral. Another concern was that the investigation would look into complaints against Howard prior to investigating her own complaint of retaliation.

A temporary restraining order barring the investigation from proceeding was issued Aug. 24, days before the investigation was set to wrap up. A hearing was held Sept. 4, and Rodriguez extended the temporary order at that time until she could review the case. 

In the Sept. 17 order, Rodriguez wrote that O’Neil and Lake could not oversee or influence either the employee complaint investigation or the retaliation investigation, though they may participate as witnesses or give evidence. They also were prohibited from releasing or acting on any report produced through the current structure. 

In addition, the order also commands the port to follow its own rules and act through port counsel to hire a new neutral investigator and restart both investigations.

The order does not dictate the substance of any investigative findings or any decisions commissioners may make after a neutral process is completed, Rodriguez wrote. 

Howard’s statement

Following the court order, Howard issued a statement expressing her gratitude for the decisions. 

“From the beginning, I have welcomed a full and fair review consistent with due process. I have nothing to hide, and I followed port procedures in carrying out my responsibilities,” she said in the statement.  “… I look forward to that process moving forward and to the community having an opportunity to understand the facts. I remain committed to the Port of Benton, its employees, and the community we serve.”

Her attorney, Todd Wyatt, said in a statement, “Court intervention against the Port of Benton, Commissioner William O’Neil, and his personal attorney, Carolyn Lake, should never have been necessary. This situation could have been avoided had they followed the law, the Port’s own rules, and basic principles of due process.”

The port declined to comment on the matter, saying it is not connected to the entity’s day-to-day operations. 

Port appeal

Since the order was issued, a flurry of legal motions have been filed. The port is seeking to have the decision reviewed by the Court of Appeals Division III. 

In her motion for review, Lake argued that because of legal errors in its decision, “the Superior Court of Benton County has inserted itself into the port internal processes.”

She wrote that the court order deviates from the port’s policies and procedures and “further delays resolution of the matter of port leadership.”

The motion seeks to stop the court order until the appeal process is completed, as well as to review and overturn the court order, or at least modify or cancel certain parts of the order.  

Allegations

Howard’s allegations of retaliation arose shortly after she was put on paid leave in January. She had reported complaints in September 2025 relating to actions by Commissioner Scott Keller that violated state gifting laws and port policy, which were then investigated.

The investigation, which found that Keller violated state law or port policy in four instances, wrapped up in December 2025. Howard was also given a merit raise that month. 

In the first commission meeting of 2026, which was also O’Neil’s first meeting after being elected, commissioners voted to suspend Howard and strip her position of much of its power with little explanation or discussion.

A news release from the port at the time said that the suspension was “pending the outcome of an internal review.” 

In a Jan. 12 letter to port counsel John O’Leary, Wyatt said the commissioner’s acted in retaliation for Howard bringing forward complaints and called for her reinstatement. 

Commissioners took little action on the complaints against Keller, and in February, they voted to fire former Director of Finance Alicia Myers, less than three months after she was hired. 

Concerns about the gifting law violations, as well as Howard’s suspension, Myers’ termination, and utility issues at the Richland Airport, prompted efforts to recall all three commissioners.  

Recall effort

Former port contractor Ashley Garza, who first discovered discrepancies related to utilities at the Richland Airport while working for the port, helped initiate the recall. Her father, retired Benton County District Court Judge Eugene Pratt, leads the recall group, Citizens for a Better Port. 

The group began collecting signatures for the recall measure after a state Supreme Court decision in July allowed the effort to proceed. 

A committee opposing the recall was formed later that month, called Stop the Misleading Recall. Chaired by retired Benton Franklin Superior Court judge Bruce Spanner, the effort is partially financially backed by O’Neil, the committee’s treasurer. 

Citizens for a Better Port had raised $7,409 by early October, with $1,704 spent, mostly on signage and legal fees. 

Stop the Misleading Recall had raised $3,700 by early October, with $2,000 paid by O’Neil. The committee spent $2,107 on signage and videography.