County, prosecutor win federal lawsuit
SPOKANE - A former Grant County deputy prosecutor lost one of her cases against the county and her former boss.
An US District Court jury decided Prosecutor Angus Lee did not violate disability discrimination laws when he fired Teresa Chen in April 2009. The verdict came after a three-day trial in Spokane, starting Monday.
Judge Edward F. Shea dismissed a second claim stating Lee's action violated public policy, during the trial, according to court records.
A civil lawsuit, claiming Lee violated the Washington state Family Leave Act, is still active in Chelan County Superior Court.
Chen started with the prosecutor's office in 2002, handling appeals and serving as a "back-up" attorney, handling an occasional superior court trial, consulting on various issues, making charging decisions and preparing adult felony cases for trial, according to court records.
Before Lee was appointed in 2009, Chen was one of several deputies signing two letters opposing his appointment, according to court records. The first supported his opponent, former Chief Deputy Steve Hallstrom. The second declared her lack of confidence in Lee.
After Lee was appointed, Chen spoke with him, asking about the future of her position. Lee told her he wanted her to remain an employee and he would consult her about any significant changes.
Lee spoke with Human Resources Director Tammie Hechler about changing how prosecutions were handled, telling her he wanted to switch to a "vertical-prosecution system," according to court records. The change requires deputy prosecutors to handle any cases from when a person is charged through the appeals process.
When the system was implemented, Lee planned to get rid of the appellate deputy position, replacing it with a new deputy prosecutor position, according to court records.
Shortly after Lee fired former Administrative Assistant Cathleen Neils and Hallstrom, Chen went to Hechler to ask what she could do to take care of her health and preserve her job, according to court records.
"Ms. Hechler made it clear that, as a long-time employee, Ms. Chen was eligible for (the Family Medical Leave Act)," Shea wrote in an earlier decision. "Ms. Hechler gave Ms. Chen a packet containing Grant County's FMLA policy and told her to read it over and to contact her if she had any questions."
Chen gave Hechler a "non-FMLA" medical release from work or school on April 2. The release covered from April 2 to May 1, 2009, according to court records.
Lee called Chen four days later. Lee claims he was eliminating the appellate deputy position and transferring her to Grant County District Court. Chen claims Lee questioned whether she was really sick, demanding her resignation and threatened her with demotion by transferring her to district court.
"Ms. Chen advised Mr. Lee that she believed the assignment was 'punitive' and that district court was 'below (her) abilities and experiences.' Yet, Ms. Chen claims she did not reject the offer outright. Mr. Lee decided to fire her," Shea wrote.
Shea dismissed two of Chen's claims earlier in the year, stating she wasn't protected under the First Amendment or the federal Family Medical Leave Act because of her position.
Chen's attorney, Steve Lacy, proceeded on a claim the firing violated policies against disability discrimination, and a common law claim the firing violated public policy.
Shea dismissed the second claim during the trial, stating it only applies when other laws don't cover the claim.
"The WLAD adequately protects the policy of allowing employees to take disability leave free of retaliatory termination. (The) plaintiff's WLAD claim was not precluded by the operation of law, and indeed, was fully litigated before a jury," Shea wrote.
Lee and Commissioner Cindy Carter expressed excitement about the verdict. Carter said she believed the state case was going to be dropped.
"The trial lasted three days but it took the jury only 10 minutes to return a verdict that I had not violated Washington employment law in any way," Lee stated. "The fact that it only took the jury 10 minutes to find in my favor shows that the jury viewed this entire case as completely frivolous and without merit. I am pleased that this distraction is behind me and I view this verdict as a complete and absolute vindication."
Lacy was unavailable for comment.