Confidential legal settlements exposed in Elberta

Legal issues have continued to plague the town of Elberta recently, as two recent legal settlements given to the Baldwin Times have revealed.

These settlements are just a few of the legal problems the town has faced over the last year, which also include multiple EEOC complaints, allegations of racial bias, alleged improper usage of grant funds for road paving and a state ethics complaint filed against Mayor Marvin Williams.

However, the secrecy involved in these two settlements does raise questions about what liabilities Elberta’s taxpayers could be on the hook for in the future.

The Caryn Woerner Case

Earlier this month, the town settled a lawsuit brought by former town employee Caryn Woerner, who formerly served as the town’s planning and zoning administrator.

Woerner’s suit alleged that a dispute arose out of events surrounding Woerner’s participation in an FBI investigation. Her claim said she was “retaliated and discriminated against” for her actions, that ultimately led to the town getting rid of her position and terminating her employment.

In her suit, Woerner brought action against the town, Williams, current Council members Jim Hamby, Michael Hudson, Alma Doege and Betty Wood, as well as former Council member Don Koontz Sr.

The council recently voted to authorize Williams to negotiate and sign the settlement to end the suit, which Gulf Coast Media obtained.

In the settlement, Woerner is granted a $45,000 check as payment for all attorneys’ fees and costs.

She is also entitled to 46 months “front pay” for consulting services to the town. That pay will be calculated at the rate of $10 per hour on the basis of a 32-hour work week, or about $1,280 per month.

The town also agreed to pay the employer’s contribution to her Retirement Systems of Alabama obligations, as well as 100 percent of her individual medical coverage and $100 towards spousal insurance coverage through the town’s insurance provider.

At the end of Woerner’s 46-month “consultancy,” the town agreed to create the position of Planning and Zoning Director with a 32-hour work week, which would be offered to Woerner at the rate of $18 per hour. She would be guaranteed the position for four years under the terms laid out.

In exchange for those terms, Woerner agreed to drop her suit against the town, and all parties involved in the proceedings agreed that none of the information contained in the settlement could be discussed with any other party.

While the initial monetary claims made in the settlement would likely be covered under the town’s insurance policies, the creation of the Planning and Zoning Director position and its salary and benefits would likely have to come from the town’s budget.

The Ashley Powers Case

Many Elberta citizens had questions following the sudden resignation and departure of former Town Clerk Ashley Powers late last year, and the settlement agreement obtained helps shine some light on that situation.

In the agreement, Powers agreed to immediately resign as the town clerk upon signing the agreement.

Powers also agreed to pay restitution to the town of $6,800 at the rate of $50 per month until the sum is repaid – which would take a little more than 11 years.

In exchange for her final payment, the town would release her “from any and all actions relating specifically to the misappropriation or mismanagement of funds relating to the Town credit card issued to Ashley Powers and rental monies associated with the Town of Elberta’s Civic Center.”

It remains to be seen whether that clause would currently indemnify Powers from any possible criminal action, as sources have told Gulf Coast Media the Baldwin County’s Sheriff’s office and a Baldwin County grand jury could currently be studying the matter.

For her part, Powers would release all claims she had against the town, including those involving back pay or benefits owed, disciplinary actions taken against Powers by the town or an Equal Employment Opportunity Commmission complaint Powers filed against the town and several of its council members.

Again, all involved in the settlement – including Powers and the town’s elected officials, were sworn to keep the agreement confidential.

However, unlike the Woerner agreement, the town council never held a public vote to allow the mayor to negotiate or sign the settlement, casting a question on the legality on the settlement and its terms.

Ken Raines’ resignation

Raines’ law firm represented the town and its interests on both of these issues, as well as other complaints and legal problems the town has encountered over the last few years.

A few months ago, Raines sent a letter to the council asking to renegotiate his contract with the town regarding his legal services – a contract that would have raised the fee for his services.

“They’re basically going from $100 to $150 per hour,” Hamby said, at a recent meeting. “When you read this letter, it’s ambiguous because it said we had them on retainer for $1,000 per month and that you renegotiated that to a higher amount. We would pay a higher retainer but we would be billed for less work. It’s not clear to me whether we’d be at the lower retained to the higher retainer, and that they would want to bill us for everything instead of some of that hourly rate being eaten up by the retainer fee.”

Councilman John Conti raised questions about why the town didn’t have an annual contract with Raines and his firm when Raines advised them to have similar contracts with other businesses and people doing business with the town.

“Tell us what you’re going to do for us, how it can benefit us, and what it’s going to cost us,” Conti said. “That’s what I would recommend we have from the attorney before we decide to vote to maintain this particular law firm or not.”

The town and Raines had been continuing negotiations, but last week, Raines sent a letter to the town resigning from the position.

“Unfortunately, due to current business demands and time constraints it appears that my law firm can no longer continue to assist the Town of Elberta as Town Attorney,” Raines wrote.

Elberta officials say the search for Raines’ replacement is now ongoing, as they pursue their options.