Pennsylvania County Settles First Amendment Suit with Former Deputy Warden for $87,500
Pennsylvania County Settles First Amendment Suit with Former Deputy Warden for $87,500
On November 16, 2012, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, the county prison board, and the prison's warden settled a lawsuit brought by a former deputy warden alleging he was fired after truthfully giving testimony to a grand jury and in civil lawsuits regarding corruption at the prison.
John Conrad was the Deputy Warden of the Northumberland County Prison between October 2001 and March 2009, when he was terminated by the prison board at a public hearing. Conrad filed a civil rights suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 in federal court alleging that the hearing was a sham and the decision to terminate him had been previously made. He alleged that the true reason for terminating him was that he truthfully testified before a grand jury investigating corruption at the prison and in two lawsuits brought against Northumberland County.
In one of the lawsuits, Conrad testified that there were certain guards at the prison whom the warden refused to discipline, even when they abused sick time, slept on the job, cursed supervisors and choked prisoners. He also testified that the warden took a dildo sex toy to the part of the prison housing females and showed it to them, took female prisoners into Conrad's office when he was not there, often keeping them there for up to 20 minutes and improperly used his own personal vehicle to transport a female prisoner to another county prison. The female prisoner who was improperly transported alleged that the warden raped her during the transport. Conrad also testified that the warden allowed preferred female prisoners to wear colored underwear and perfume in violation of prison policy.
The suit alleged retaliation and violations of Conrad's rights to free speech, liberty and equal protection. It included pendent state claims of violation of public policy, wanton infliction of emotional distress on Conrad and his wife, libel, and violations of the statutes protecting whistle blowers. The Conrads were represented by Berwick attorneys Franklin E. Kepner, Jr. and Joshua J. Cochran.
The defendants settled the suit for $87,500 in late 2012. The court then ordered the suit dismissed. See: Conrad v. Northumberland County, U.S.D.C.-M.D.Penn., No. 4:09-CV-01326-JEJ.
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Related legal case
Conrad v. Northumberland County
| Year | 2012 |
|---|---|
| Cite | U.S.D.C.-M.D.Penn., No. 4:09-CV-01326-JEJ |
| Level | District Court |
| Conclusion | Settlement |
| Damages | 87,500.00 |