By Andrew McIntosh
The Sacramento Bee, Calif.
The constitutional rights of two former deputy chiefs with the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District were violated in 2006 when they were fired for alleged misconduct but denied pre-dismissal hearings to defend themselves.
That is the view of two different Sacramento Superior Court judges who heard evidence in two separate cases in recent months.
The case could cost ratepayers as much as $450,000, attorneys told The Bee.
Richard Margarita, general counsel for Metro Fire, declined to comment on the cases or discuss what the rulings may cost the district.
In the first ruling, Judge Gail D. Ohanesian found that Deputy Chief George Appel was not given a chance to explain his actions at a so-called Skelly hearing before he was fired in May 2006.
All public employees in California are entitled to a Skelly hearing to explain their actions before they are fired.
In the second case, Judge Timothy M. Frawley also has issued a tentative ruling that Deputy Chief Teresa Means-Ferguson was denied her constitutional right to a pre-dismissal Skelly hearing when she was fired in October 2006.
Appel has already won an estimated $50,000 in back pay and benefits from Metro Fire for the period between his dismissal on May 19, 2006, and Aug. 15, 2006, when the district finally offered him a hearing. He did not attend.
However, the judge rejected Appel’s claim that his firing was too harsh, compared to punishments handed out to union members, saying his conduct was incompatible with his status as a senior manager and leader responsible for disciplining staff.
Appel was fired after officials caught him and another employee breaching district Internet and e-mail policies.
Documents showed Appel and a colleague distributed sexually explicit photos and images that officials characterized as racist and homophobic.
Appel’s lawyer, Gregory L. Windheim, said the district’s actions blatantly violated Appel’s rights and his treatment as a 30-year veteran was reprehensible.
Frawley made an almost identical tentative ruling in Means-Ferguson’s case.
The district fired Means-Ferguson, a human resources deputy chief, on Oct. 31, 2006, amid a series of allegations of wrongdoing. The district alleged she was involved in hiring unqualified paramedic recruits and mishandling a complaint from a female employee who alleged she was sexually harassed by 20 firefighters.
Means-Ferguson has denied all wrongdoing and filed a wrongful dismissal lawsuit.
In her case, the judge said Means-Ferguson would be entitled to back pay and benefits since her firing, an amount her attorney Frank Zumwalt estimated was around $400,000.
The judge’s final ruling will likely be handed down next month.
Zumwalt said Means-Ferguson was thrilled by her tentative victory and maintains she was a victim of blatant racism and sexism at the district.
The same day the tentative ruling came down in the Means-Ferguson case, Margarita, 51, told Metro Fire’s board that he would retire Dec. 31.
Margarita denied that the two events were related. “After 27 years of public service, it’s time for me to enjoy life,” the former county prosecutor said.
Copyright 2008, The Sacramento Bee