Here's a news item from the Associated Press:  BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A former Idaho Transportation Department director was asked to resign in 2006 following a whistleblower complaint, a detail hidden from the public until court documents were released last week in a separate case. The papers, filed in U.S. District Court on Thursday, reveal circumstances of how former director David Ekern exited his job in August 2006. That month, Ekern said he was quitting to pursue "significant career opportunities." But a whistleblower complaint from March 2006 alleged Ekern engaged in favoritism and "misuse of power and authority," prompting Transportation Board members to vote in secret session to remove him. Members then gave Ekern "the opportunity to gracefully leave ITD." The documents, filed by ex-ITD Director Pamela Lowe, Ekern's successor, seek to bolster her claim that she was illegally fired in 2009. You can read the full story here at spokesman.com.