Brian Minturn, former CEO of the Louisiana Teachers' Retirement System, Baton Rouge, filed suit against the $11.6 billion system claiming he was fired because he reported ethics violations involving the system's staff and private equity manager Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst, said Bruce Macmurdo, the former executive's attorney.
The complaint, filed in Louisiana state court, said Mr. Minturn told the state ethics board in May 2002 that staff members had accepted illegal gratuities and personal gifts from Hicks, Muse, which ran $1 billion in "high risk, private equity funds" for the system. He was fired in July 2003.
Mr. Minturn is seeking to recover salary and benefits, but state law prohibits parties from specifying dollar amounts in petitions.
Mark Semer, Hicks Muse spokesman, said the company cannot comment because it has not seen the lawsuit. Floyd Falcon of the law firm Avant & Falcon, who is representing the board, did not return calls seeking comment by press time.
