A few weeks back, I took my kid to Stella Nova on N. Western for an after-school snack.
After placing our order and looking for a spot to sit, who did I see in the middle of the coffee shop, dressed nice and non-frumpily, having what appeared to be a job interview, but famed N. Western bar fly turned infamous Stitt grifter Shelley Zumwalt!
I have to admit, it was weird seeing her at a place on Western that doesn’t serve Lost Lake:
Out of professional courtesy, I didn’t say anything to ol’ Zums.
Call me crazy – or a coward – but interrupting her job interview to reminisce about the various times she was accused of age discrimination, forced out of tourism, or slapped with a $20,000 ethics violation as a state employee seemed kind of mean and inappropriate. Let grifter bygones be grifter bygones, right?
In hindsight, it also would have been a bit of a dated discussion.
According to Wendy Suares with Fox 25, there’s newer, more relevant stuff to discuss!
Last night, Wendy reported that Shelley received a $90,838 payment from the state in February to settle a somewhat mysterious open records request she made for her personnel file and other documents.
When you combine that with the $108,000 or so she made via her original severance agreement, it means Shelley walked away with nearly $200,000 after her “retirement” from the public sector.
Out of all the money she received, the $90,838 payment – which is 4.5 times the amount she paid for her ethics violation – is the most mysterious and concerning.
Here are the deets:
In addition to those payments, Zumwalt received a $90,838 payment in February 2026.
Documents obtained through an Open Records Request show that money was part of a separate settlement agreement between Zumwalt and the state.
The agreement indicates Zumwalt agreed to withdraw three open records requests she filed with the Department of Tourism around February 5, 2025.
Yep, the state essentially spent $90,838 to settle an open records request with Shelley Zumwalt. That begs the question – what the hell was in those records?! And more importantly, how can we get them… or at least be the ones paid $90,000 to not look at them?
Seriously, for a state and administration that supposedly value transparency, paying nearly $91,000 to make an open records request disappear is certainly an interesting strategy.
Wendy was wondering the same thing...
FOX 25 filed its own request to determine what she was seeking. One of those requests specifically sought records the state had already provided to Fox 25 back in October 2024.
She also requested a copy of her own personnel file and all documents that “recently came to light” leading to her dismissal from state service.
What was in those records that would lead the state to fork over $90K? Is it something juicy and gossipy, or just another Stitt grift at play?
I have no clue. Maybe I should finally take Shelley up on that non-combative coffee meeting and she can tell me. I know a good place.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
