Lawsuit accused Fresno ‘public figure’ of taking trip. It was Keshia Thomas
An allegation made in a wrongful termination lawsuit implied a “local public figure” took an inappropriate trip paid for by a Fresno tax credit company.
The Fresno Bee has learned that Keshia Thomas, a Fresno Unified trustee since 2018 and City Council District 3 candidate, is that person. Those who were in the group with Thomas on the trip considered it to be a legitimate business expense, The Bee also found.
Lillian Macias Weiland filed the lawsuit against the Central Valley NMTC Fund, LLC, last year. Weiland accused the firm, which helps businesses gain federal tax credits, of firing her after she complained about what she considered to be business irregularities.
“Plaintiff challenged Mr. (president/CEO Oliver) Baines for improper business deductions for personal use (or for non-business use). As recently as January 2024, Plaintiff wrote an email challenging Mr. Baines’s use of the business credit card for non-business use, including airline charges for another local public figure who accompanied Mr. Baines on out-of-town trips,” the lawsuit alleged in one of the allegations.
A source with direct knowledge, but who could not speak on the record because of the lawsuit, confirmed Baines paid Thomas’s airfare to attend a 2022 meeting in Detroit. Others who were there confirmed Thomas was one of the participants and said it was a legitimate business trip.
Central Valley NMTC Fund and the Fresno Metro Black Chamber of Commerce toured the Dunamis Charge plant, a manufacturer of EV chargers, located in Southfield, Mich., just north of Detroit. The chamber administered a state Transformative Climate Communities grant designed to bring EV chargers to Fresno.
Thomas works as a consultant for the chamber, and at the time, served on the advisory board for Central Valley NMTC.
Weiland filed the lawsuit last October. It was not until this week that sources confirmed to The Bee about the identity of the “local public figure.”
Regarding the lawsuit, CVNMTC denied the allegations in court filings. The two sides met in mediation, but a trial is scheduled for August 2027. Attorneys for Weiland did not respond to messages left by The Bee.
Chamber president: a legitimate trip
Cassandra Little, CEO of the Fresno Metro Black Chamber, called it a legitimate business trip.
“They showed us their plant, talked to us about all their charging infrastructure,” Little said.
Others on the trip, Little said, were Thomas, Baines, Pastor James Archie — chair of the chamber’s board — and Windell Pascascio, another chamber member and president of Imperial Electric Services.
“This was a trip on bringing potential EV chargers to Fresno, so we went out there to look at the process and if it’d be a good fit for us,” Archie, pastor at Moments of Blessing Church, said. He also confirmed the legitimacy of the trip and Thomas’ attendance.
Thomas gave The Bee a brief statement.
“I don’t have anything to add to that,” Thomas said.
Baines declined comment. He served on the Fresno City Council from 2011 to 2019.
Thomas is one of seven candidates for the open City Council District 3 seat. The other candidates are West Park School District Trustee Fernando Alvarez, crisis response manager Tiffany Apodaca, Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula, tradesman Charles Montoya, and Fresno County Department of Health administrative caseworker Jalen Swank.
Also on the ballot is real estate broker and contractor Larry Burrus. He has not responded to Bee questions or invitations to attend candidate forums.
This story was originally published May 28, 2026 at 4:28 PM.
