The suit alleged that felony prosecutor Cary Piel made racially insulting remarks in Boldware’s presence; that his wife, Susan Piel, who was [Nadiya Williams] Boldware’s supervisor in the misdemeanor crimes section of the office, did not protect Boldware from having to hear those remarks; and that Ryan Calvert, Susan Piel’s brother and another prosecutor with the district attorney’s office, made remarks later that harassed Boldware and contributed to a hostile work environment. ...Ms. Boldware and her tormenters are all still employed at the DA's office, which must make for a particularly awkward dynamic with so many family members and former co-defendants working there.
[Attorney Bill] Trantham said the county spent $250,000 defending the suit. County officials hired Dallas lawyer Thomas Brandt, who specializes in federal civil rights law, instead of using in-house lawyers. In addition to the $510,000 award from the jury, the county must pay the fees of Trantham and Chris Raesz, who also tried the case.
“I think we’re looking at fees of about $100,000 each,” he said. “This is going to be a million-dollar hit for the county.”
MORE (June 26): Four prosecutors were fired yesterday in the wake of the jury verdict, according to the Denton Record-Chronicle:
Denton County District Attorney Paul Johnson fired four prosecutors in his office Monday after the county lost a $510,000 racial discrimination lawsuit last week in federal court.
Susan Piel, Cary Piel, John Renz and Ryan Calvert all were fired at about 11 a.m. Monday, said Jamie Beck, first assistant district attorney who acts as Johnson’s spokeswoman.
She declined to comment further on the matter.
Denton lawyer Bill Trantham, who tried the case against the county, said Monday that he thought it was politically expedient for Johnson to fire all four of the lawyers involved in the case.
Susan Piel is married to Cary Piel, Trantham said. Calvert is his brother-in-law and Renz was his partner in a felony court.
“I think it’s an earthquake up there,” he said of the district attorney’s office. “From a political standpoint, I’d rather get rid of them all than have anyone left over when re-election time came. If I’d been Paul Johnson when it first happened, I would have just fired Cary on the spot and been done with it.”Really? The DA knew about the actions criticized in the lawsuit three years ago but is only firing them after a jury came out against him? That seems like they're not being fired for harassing a co-worker but for costing the county money. Bad optics, as they say.
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18 comments:
Hells Bells! That's a lot of Family kin working in a prosecutor's office!
For reals. What is that about?
For real! But they are all looking for new jobs today. The scuttlebut around the courthouse says that just prior to the lawsuit being filed, the DA cancelled the office's Malpractice Insurance as a cost cutting measure and county taxpayers will take the million dollar hit.
6:56AM said " The scuttlebut around the courthouse says that just prior to the lawsuit being filed, the DA cancelled the office's Malpractice Insurance.."
That in and of itself tells you how untouchable prosecutors really think thing are.
6:56/7:30: Prosecutors have "absolute immunity" from civil suits regarding their conduct prosecuting cases so I'm not sure why they'd need malpractice insurance. I didn't think prosecutors even carried it.
FWIW, and to be clear, I'm not a lawyer, this is an employment discrimination case, so it probably would not be covered by malpractice insurance, anyway.
No problem. Just get a judge to vacate the ruling.
Hey Grits, do you happen to know if there is any solid proof that the nasty krapola really came out of his mouth?
Asking because if there isn't any recording and / or other people that heard it, then how the hell does anyone really know it did? I'm having a real problem believing it really happend. But as it looks, 12 Dentonites did believe it.
C'mon, a white man (lawyer) saying this to a woman (lawyer) three years ago is just hard to believe. With a slap on the wrist in the form of being fired, you can look forward to seeing the fantastic four open their own firm. Thanks.
NOTE: Denton County, Tx. taxpayers will pick up the tab as usual, the fantastic four will be replaced & history will rinse & repeat.
TRG, I have no specific knowledge, but from the press coverage it didn't sound like the guy disputed that he made the remark.
Anyone idiotic enough to say something like that out loud, regardless of the racial mix of whoever's in earshot, should not be in public office. Even if it was meant as a joke, how culturally ignorant do you have to be to think that it's okay to say it? And if you really do believe that way, then more's the pity.
Almost any attorney can obtain malpractice coverage. I even know of some current and former judges who still carry a policy even with judicial immunity. Many policies also allow coverage for grievance proceedings. That being said, aren't many counties/cities self-insured? I have no idea if the county carried a professional liability policy when I prosecuted, and I hope to never have to call on my policy - but like all other insurance it is worth the price. I bet some of the major professional liability providers use the case to market their services to governments - regardless of whether the conduct would have been covered or not.
ckikerintulia cites the primary back-up plan for prosecutors "...get a judge to vacate the ruling."
Fortunately in this case a judge and jury deviated back on course.
Thanks for taking the time to share this, I feel strongly about it and love learning more on this topic.
I know three of the four prosecutors that were fired. They were all excellent prosecutors. It is a sad day that they are no longer fighting for justice for the citizens of Denton County. However, the comments that were made are egregious.
http://www.dentonrc.com/local-news/local-news-headlines/20120707-court-records-shed-light-on-lawsuit.ece
Apparently, much of what was alleged and reported about these prosecutors was not true.
I have to say that I have my own Denton story with proof that I will pass on to Grits for Breakfast but to answer Thomas R. Griffith and others, the verdict did NOT come from Dentonites. It was heard in Federal Court in Sherman, TX. We are missing some info of what was said in the case, but the evidence had to be very compelling since the burden of proof in civil cases is on the Plaintiff.
while researching my brother's case I came across your article DA Fires 4 Prosecuters. One of the Prosecuters fired Ryan Calvert was the Lead Prosecuter in my brother 2009 case where he was sentenced to LIFE on 1st time convection. Larry Braka was my brother court appointed lawyer, I believe my brother was convicted based on his character (being a black man) and not the actual crime that was committed. I need all the help I can get to fight for justice for Terrance Ford. Thank you in advance. Please feelfree to contact me at 832 273 5783
while researching my brother's case I came across your article DA Fires 4 Prosecuters. One of the Prosecuters fired Ryan Calvert was the Lead Prosecuter in my brother 2009 case where he was sentenced to LIFE on 1st time convection. Larry Braka was my brother court appointed lawyer, I believe my brother was convicted based on his character (being a black man) and not the actual crime that was committed. I need all the help I can get to fight for justice for Terrance Ford. Thank you in advance. Please feelfree to contact me at 832 273 5783
Terrance Ford was legally and justifiably convicted of driving while black. The arresting officer, DPS Trooper Woody Gosser, testified that he stopped a car for speeding on I-35 in Denton County, Texas. The car was traveling seventy miles per hour in a sixty-five mile-per-hour zone. Gosser explained that in drug interdiction, law enforcement officers look for cars traveling under the speed limit or those traveling “just over the posted speed limit” because typically, persons transporting large amounts of narcotics are not going to travel at a speed that is much more than the speed limit. Obama will commute the sentence for being a drug dealer because he once was one.
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