In a shocking revelation brought to light by South Bend native and whistleblower Jesse Davis, State Senator David Niezgodski has been accused of engaging in harassing behavior towards a female staffer. Davis, who provided substantial documentation to Redress South Bend, including hundreds of emails and a voicemail left by State Senator David Niezgodski himself, has sparked an investigation into the senator's conduct. The documents, which have been verified and were previously emailed to the state Democrat Party, St Joe County Democrat Party, and the Indiana Civil Rights Commission without action, are now being released to the public for scrutiny.
To safeguard the privacy of the involved parties, sensitive personal information has been redacted from the released materials. A particularly damning piece of evidence is a voicemail from July 11th, 2017, in which a reportedly inebriated State Senator David Niezgodski expresses his affection, stating,
"You better damn well be able to say that you love someone. I love you. I love you in all the right ways. And I've done things in all the right ways. And I've been human along the way. I can't **** defend that... it doesn't matter. Done it in all the right ways. And I love you, don’t leave my life.”
This voicemail appears to have been a turning point, leading to State Senator David Niezgodski allegedly bombarding the victim with over 90 text messages within a three-day span, along with multiple late-night phone calls and unwelcomed visits to her home, including one visit where he reportedly entered her home without permission.
The victim's father, in an email to Democratic Party officials and the Civil Rights Commission, voiced his distress, accusing State Senator David Niezgodski of habitual harassment that ultimately forced his daughter to resign from her job.
“This man should not be in elected office. There is no excuse for what he put my daughter and family through,”
he wrote, expressing concern over the potential of other victims.
This development raises serious questions about State Senator David Niezgodski's suitability for public office, thanks to the efforts of Davis, who has been instrumental in ensuring these allegations come to light.
Below you will find a few of the emails we received: Email from the victim's father to ST Joe County Dems & IN Dems:
Notable quotes from exchanged emails: State Senator David Niezgodski: "If it is Indy that ultimately what you want, the State Senator has a decent shot at finding you something also, just saying :]"
Victim: "Shelia is your best employee, she knows what she is doing and you would be losing out on someone who cares more about you than you know. I appreciate all you have done for me, I just need to move on. Please Understand"
State Senator David Niezgodski: "Part of what is happening also is I have been having some talks lately with and without Sheila on how I am looking to wrap Kelly and possibly Grant into the business and also I have been speaking with her about how I want to include you more in different things. She doesn't handle change to awfully well:] As you have shared. Growing pains Hang in there young lady:]
I don't know what else to say but I just want to talk to you. I wanted you to be more closer to me on a daily basis for a long time."