A Chandler City Council member is no longer suing the government she serves.
Jane Poston and her company, J2 Media LLC, initially filed a lawsuit against the city and now-retired assistant chief Dave Ramer and Chandler Police Chief Sean Duggan in September 2024 for allowing a rumor to spread that she was being investigated by the FBI, charging that such rumors damaged her reputation and business.
An order of dismissal has been issued by a Maricopa County Superior Court judge in the case. Poston told Independent Newsmedia she requested the dismissal herself.
“We basically decided to pay our own legal fees and call it quits on the lawsuit,” Poston said.
The initial ask, in damages, was for $400,000 for herself and $100,000 for J2 Media, though Poston has stated the recovery of money was never the main issue in the case.
“I wasn’t even sure what I was being accused of,” Poston said.
The suit changed considerably in February 2025. That’s when FBI Special Agent in Charge Jose A. Perez wrote to current Chandler Police Chief Bryan Chapman to disclose there actually had been an investigation.
“In August 2023, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Phoenix Field Office, received a formal complaint from Chandler Police Department, which outlined allegations of potential misconduct involving Jane Poston,” the agent wrote. “Based upon these allegations, the FBI opened an investigation and has since determined no further investigative action is necessary and the matter is being closed.”
Poston stated, in an email, that the fault lies with everyone who should have informed her that she was the target of a probe, rather than simply it being an email dialogue between the police chief and city manager.
“I was never aware of any investigation, and I was never contacted by anyone at the FBI or any law enforcement organization,” Poston told the Independent. “It’s unclear whether this was a true ‘investigation’ or politically motivated.”
Poston had done business with the Chandler Law Enforcement Association in the years and months leading up to her election to council in 2022.
“I still don’t understand why the city waited so long to reveal there was an investigation,” she said.
She said that in January of 2024, when Duggan was about to retire, the idea of the FBI investigating her, at that point, was only a rumor to her.
An email communication from Duggan, who was about to retire, to Wright was presented. Duggan informed Wright that the FBI “is investigating” both Poston and now-former Chandler Law Enforcement Association president Officer Michael Collins for “corruption.”
In the email, Duggan told Wright, “Information was uncovered indicating Collins and Poston may have committed violations of federal law and as such, an active public corruption criminal investigation is underway.”
Poston said she hadn’t been contacted by the FBI or any other investigative agency.
CLEA added this statement to the news section of its website:
“Chandler Law Enforcement Association Responds to Media Story: In response to the recent media story, the Chandler Law Enforcement Association (CLEA) is unaware of any valid information regarding any claims made by the former city of Chandler employee. Neither the current board nor former president, Michael Collins, have been notified by any agency regarding any investigation. CLEA’s past and current board members have consistently followed all federal and state laws required for our corporation status. CLEA will continue to represent its members with unwavering diligence and will continue to support the Chandler Police officers as they put their lives on the line daily to keep our community safe.”
Poston said she now believes Duggan could have initiated something against her once a set of officer survey results painted him in a negative light.
“What we now believe happened is that he decided to investigate me, and eventually, the FBI got mentioned,” Poston told the Independent, pointing out the timing of all events isn’t clear, but that the survey results weren’t leaked until after Duggan retired.
Duggan filed an affidavit in the case in June 2025, detailing conversations he had as far back as the summer of 2023 with the FBI’s Phoenix field office staff after he “became aware” that the CLEA union was paying the $2,200 monthly salary of a J2 media employee — even after
Poston was sworn in as a Council member earlier that year.
Duggan stated he had other subsequent conversations with various FBI agents about how the investigation had been “elevated” after agents had spoken with Chandler officers.
“Prior to my retirement in January 2024, (FBI special agent in charge Akil) Davis verbally confirmed to me that the investigation remained ongoing at that time,” Duggan wrote in the affidavit.
Collins has filed three claims against the city and has sued Duggan for what he states was unfair targeting and how rumors were handled. Council has met in multiple executive sessions in 2026 to get legal advice on how to proceed in Collins’ case, with the most recent such meeting Aug. 10.
Poston was the first, but not only, council member to sue the city they serve. In late June of this year, O.D. Harris announced he’d filed a notice of claim to sue over targeted and discriminatory prosecution on election sign-tampering allegations; that case hasn’t been filed in court as of Aug. 11.
Email Jason W. Brooks at jbrooks@iniusa.org. Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.
INDEPENDENT NEWSMEDIA
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