The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a lower court’s ruling in favor of a former state employee who said he was fired because he reported the illegal use of federal funds.
The court found that the Garland County Circuit Court was correct in awarding more than $110,000 in lost wages to Bob Means, a contract psychologist who was employed at the state Department of Career Education’s Rehabilitation Services Division.
Means filed the lawsuit in January 2009. In it he said he was fired in 2008 a few days after filing a report with the U.S. Office of Inspector General about the alleged misuse of funds. He said he had also told his supervisor, Deborah Coleman, about the purported abuse.
Means testified that he told Coleman that one of his patients, identified as John Doe, had completed his rehabilitation training and was no longer qualified for services but did not want to leave the center. Means said he told Coleman that the patient “continued receiving expensive services, including housing, food and transportation” and that he thought it could be considered illegal, Justice Donald Corbin wrote in the opinion.
After he informed Coleman, Means testified, “Coleman responded that it was wrong but she did not know if it was illegal,” Corbin wrote.
A few days later, Means said he received a call from Robert Trevino, a commissioner for the Rehabilitation Services Division, who said Means’ services were being “immediately terminated” because of the implementation of “a new counseling model.”
In the lawsuit, Means sought reinstatement of his employment, benefits and retirement-service credit, and compensation for lost wages and benefits.
The Circuit Court ruled in favor of Means in January 2012 and awarded him damages of $110,452 and $510 in costs.
In its appeal, the division asked for a new trial and said Means had failed to report his allegations to an “appropriate authority” under the Whistle-Blower Act because he had informed his direct supervisor.
The court disagreed, denied a new trial and noted that Means had also taken the allegations to others, including his state senator.
“To hold as [the division] urges, that a public employee cannot report allegations of waste to an immediate supervisor would lead to an absurd result. This court has consistently held that it will not engage in statutory interpretations that defy common sense and produce absurd results,” Corbin wrote.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 04/26/2013