My name is Michael Rodgers and I am the whistleblower in the former Oregon Governor Kitzhaber email leak and I need your help.

As the Interim Administrator for the Enterprise Technology Services (ETS) division of the Department of Administrative Services (DAS), the email from Governor Kitzhaber’s office requesting deletion of the Governor’s emails stored on state servers escalated to me. Emails stored on state servers are considered public records and deletion of such is a violation of Oregon State law.

Unwilling to authorize the deletion of emails and after exhausting reporting options within the State of Oregon I decided to blow the whistle by contacting the media via Willamette Week. 

I was subsequently put on paid administrative leave, questioned by the Oregon State Police, and asked to resign by a Marion County Deputy District Attorney in exchange for not being charged with Official Misconduct.  I have also been the subject of an internal Oregon Department of Justice investigation relating to my attempts to secure data, which they did not feel I was authorized to do.  I have stood my ground because I do not believe that I did anything wrong.

My attorney bills are mounting into the tens of thousands of dollars and it has sucked my savings dry. This is where you can help. If you support my actions and can spare a few dollars to help pay down my attorney debt I will be eternally grateful as I continue my quest for transparency in government.

For more details on my situation please

read the latest article

from Willamette Weekly.

Again, thank you for your support.

Michael