Maverick County Employees file Employment Discrimination Complaints against County
By: Miguel Muñoz, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2016
Eight (8) Maverick County employees have filed employment discrimination complaints against Maverick County with the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in San Antonio, Texas, alleging that they have been discriminated at work by Maverick County.
Although Maverick County Commissioners Court have not made any public comments regarding these pending eight (8) employment discrimination complaints against Maverick County, the Eagle Pass Business Journal has learned that the eight or a majority of the complainants from Maverick County are from the County Auditor’s Department. The Maverick County Auditor is Sandra Watkins.
The Maverick County Auditor is appointed by the District Judges of Maverick County, specifically 293rd Judicial District Judge Cynthia Muñiz and 365th Judicial District Judge Amado J. Abascal, III. However, District Judges Muñiz and Abascal disagreed on the reappointment of former Maverick County Auditor Fidencio Ortiz, causing former Governor Rick Perry to appoint a third District Judge, 38th Judicial District Judge Camille Dubose of Uvalde County, to a three-judge panel to determine whether to reappoint former County Auditor Fidencio Ortiz or appoint a new County Auditor. In April of 2015, Judges Muñiz and Dubose voted to appoint Sandra Watkins as the new Maverick County Auditor while Judge Abascal voted for reappointment of former County Auditor Fidencio Ortiz in a split decision.
Maverick County Commissioners Court led by County Judge David R. Saucedo and County Commissioners Roberto Ruiz, Jerry Morales, and Jose Luis Rosales spent over $100,000 of precious taxpayers funds to develop, design, and implement an orchestrated campaign to oust former County Auditor Fidencio Ortiz and the recommendation to the District Judges to appoint Sandra Watkins as the new County Auditor.
On January 29, 2015, Maverick County Commissioners Court approved an Order requesting District Judges Muñiz and Abascal to investigate and remove former County Auditor Fidencio Ortiz and authorized the County’s legal counsel, Luis R. Vera of San Antonio, Texas, to file a Writ of Mandamus in the Texas Fourth Court of Appeals if necessary. County Judge David R. Saucedo and Commissioners Roberto Ruiz, Jerry Morales and Jose Luis Rosales voted to approve this Order while Commissioner Rosy Cantu abstained.
While the exact allegations of employment discrimination by the eight Maverick County employees against Maverick County are yet unknown because the complaints are still under investigation and being processed by the U.S. EEOC office in San Antonio, Texas, it is known that it involves employment discrimination matters.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal investigation found that a meeting was held earlier this month between the complainants and their attorney, Javier Espinosa of San Antonio, Texas, and Maverick County and its attorneys in San Antonio, Texas, but that the EEOC and the parties were unable to negotiate an amicable settlement agreement concerning the employment discrimination complaints against Maverick County. The Maverick County employees who filed the employment discrimination complaints are represented by Javier Espinosa of The Espinosa Law Firm in San Antonio, Texas.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal was able to contact San Antonio attorney, Javier Espinosa, regarding these eight complaints against Maverick County, but Espinosa was not at liberty to comment on the specific complaints of employment discrimination since the EEOC proceedings are ongoing and not completed, except to confirm that there are eight complainants.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal was unable to contact Maverick County’s attorneys before press time.
Under the laws enforced by the EEOC, it is illegal to discriminate against someone or an individual (applicant or employee) because of that person’s race, color, religion, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability, or genetic information. It is also illegal to retaliate against a person because she or he complained about discrimination, filed a charge of discrimination, or participated in an employment discrimination investigation or lawsuit.
The EEOC investigates each complaint of employment discrimination, attempts to mediate complaints with merit, and issue a Right to Sue Letter to complainants if an agreement is not reached between the parties and/or a complaint is meritorious.
Once a complainant or person filing a complaint receives a Right to Sue Letter from the EEOC, the complainant is allowed to file a lawsuit in federal court and seek actual damages, punitive damages, reasonable attorney’s fees, and court costs and expenses.
It is anticipated that the eight (8) Maverick County employees will file a federal lawsuit against Maverick County upon their receipt of a Right to Sue Letter from the EEOC, unless Maverick County reaches an amicable settlement or resolution of their employment discrimination complaints.
Generally, Defendant’s deny the allegations of employment discrimination filed against them. The mere fact that an employee files an EEOC employment discrimination complaint is not evidence of any alleged wrongdoing, unless proven in a court of law.
Depending on what happens to these eight Maverick County employees’ employment discrimination complaints against Maverick County, County taxpayers may have to pay for damages, attorney’s fees, court costs as well as defense attorney’s fees and costs in the near future.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal will be reporting future articles on the outcome of these eight employment discrimination complaints filed with the EEOC by these eight Maverick County employees against Maverick County.
