County of Tulare Personnel Actions Upheld
Tulare County Superior Court Assistant Presiding Judge Bret Hillman dismissed two defendants from a lawsuit by two former Tulare County Department of Animal Control employees alleging harassment and discrimination on Monday, June 14. Judge Hillman found the plaintiffs, former employees Paul Grenseman and Julia Jimenez, failed to present evidence of unlawful harassment against defendants Tim Lutz and Shawn Mathis.
On Tuesday, a jury found in favor of the County of Tulare and the two remaining individual defendants, Paula Mendoza and Yessica Ozuna. The jury rejected all claims of retaliation, harassment, and a hostile work environment after only 45 minutes of deliberation.
“The judge’s decision and the jury verdict confirm the personnel actions taken by the County to terminate employees for multiple documented causes including the gross misuse of county resources and repeated dishonesty on the job were entirely justified,” said Mike Ennis, Chairman, Tulare County Board of Supervisors.
“While we are gratified the truth eventually came to light due to the legal system’s diligence, it came at the taxpayer’s expense,” said Mike Ennis. “County personnel spent hundreds of hours interviewing witnesses and gathering documentary evidence to defend the County from these fabricated allegations brought by two former employees represented by attorneys Melo and Sarsfield. These costs and the lost time are ultimately paid by county taxpayers.”
The County of Tulare is in the process of compiling a cost bill to be presented to plaintiffs for payment containing all costs associated with having to defend this meritless lawsuit. “We will aggressively pursue reimbursement for those costs to the extent possible; and free funds for use for essential county services,” said Kathleen Bales-Lange, Tulare County Counsel. This litigation has cost the County in excess of $400,000. Under the law, the County can only recover a small portion of its costs from the plaintiff. “The County is forced to defend itself against meritless and frivolous lawsuits in order to save the taxpayers’ money in the long run.”
The ruling in favor of Tulare County follows a recent favorable judgment in an unrelated employment case, Kaelble v. County of Tulare. Another case, Crisanto v. County of Tulare, filed by Melo and Sarsfield, was recently dismissed. Crisanto resigned her employment with an understanding that the County would not pursue costs against her.
Case Records
Grenseman v. County of Tulare
https://efiling.tulare.courts.ca.gov/?q=node/364/389089/FV-Summary-Portal
Kaelble v. County of Tulare
https://efiling.tulare.courts.ca.gov/public-portal/?q=node/364/382760
Crisanto v. County of Tulare
https://efiling.tulare.courts.ca.gov/public-portal/?q=node/364/448562