NE Firefighter, City Agree to $1.29M Settlement
By Lori Pilger
Source Lincoln Journal Star, Neb.
A Lincoln firefighter and the city have agreed to a $1.29 million settlement to avoid a second trial to determine how much he should be paid for emotional distress for the retaliation he faced after reporting instances of discrimination.
The settlement includes $690,000 for attorney fees, said Lincoln City Attorney Jeff Kirkpatrick.
At a trial in February, a federal jury awarded Troy Hurd $1,177,815, the bulk of it for past and future emotional distress.
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Senior U.S. District Judge Laurie Smith Camp later ruled that the jury wasn't justified in awarding $930,472 for future emotional distress and gave the fire captain a choice. He could agree to $300,000 instead or have a new trial. Hurd opted for trial.
But last week, the judge dismissed the case at the request of attorneys on both sides.
The award for lost wages and medical expenses was unchanged, but under terms of the settlement, Hurd would get $519,158 for past and future emotional distress.
Hurd's attorney fees weren't included in the jury's initial award, but an amount would have been ordered by the court.
Kirkpatrick said the settlement "brings closure to the matter for Mr. Hurd and avoids the necessity of a new jury trial, which was approaching.
"The parties are able to avoid the stress, uncertainty and expense of an additional trial," he said. "From the city’s perspective, there is a certain sense of relief that we can close the books on litigation that had its beginning in events occurring in 2011."
On the other side, attorney Kelly Brandon said, "Troy would like to thank the jurors who served in his trial and his family for their tremendous support during this very painful time in his life."
In closing arguments at trial, another of Hurd's attorneys, Paige Fiedler, said after Hurd filed a formal complaint alleging firefighter trainer Eddie Mueller, now a captain, was treating Sara Khalil differently because she’s a woman born in Iraq, people in the department started looking at him as a troublemaker.
He was passed over for promotions and written up for things that didn’t lead to disciplinary action for others.
Hurd continues to work at Lincoln Fire & Rescue. Khalil now is a Lincoln police officer.
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