Greeley likely to settle 4 legal claims for $825K

3 claims related to October 2022 crash involving police vehicle

The Greeley City Council will likely move tomorrow to settle four legal claims against the city, dispensing $825,000 to four people.

The council’s agenda for Tuesday’s special meeting following the regularly scheduled work session lists two separate considerations of legal settlements:

• With former Interim Finance Director Tammy Hitchens for $75,000;

• And with Benita Cano, Bernarda Rodriguez and Francisca Garza for a total of $750,000 to be shared among them.

Hitchens settlement

The details of what led to the $75,000 settlement agreement are unclear. Hitchens was hired as the city’s deputy director of finance in mid-December 2021, and she was appointed the interim director of the department in mid-June of this year, according to the prepared terms of the settlement. Hitchens’ employment with the city ended at her behest at 5 p.m. Oct. 17, according to the settlement terms.

The agreement to be considered on the consent agenda Tuesday requires Hitchens to agree not to file any legal claims with the city with regards to her former employment, although what those claims might have been are not disclosed. The agreement also allows Hitchens to collect unemployment benefits and tell future employers she left the city in good standing.

Both Hitchens and the city also agree not to disparage or discredit each other in public comments, according to the agreement terms.

City Manager Raymond Lee III has suggested Debbie Reid be appointed as the city’s new interim finance director and interim city treasurer, according to the consent agenda for council’s special meeting. Her role as interim city treasurer is “ex-officio,” meaning the job duties come with being named interim finance director.

John Karner, Greeley’s former director of finance, left the city in June, a few months short of three years on the job. He started the job in late October 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The city continues to search for a new permanent director of finance.

Cano-Rodriguez-Garza Settlement

The $750,000 settlement agreement on council’s special meeting agenda stems from an Oct. 10, 2022, crash involving a Greeley Police vehicle, according to the agreement terms.

“The police department vehicle failed to yield right-of-way at a stop sign and did not have emergency lights or sirens active at the time,” according to city documents. “(Cano, Rodriguez and Garza) claimed damages for medical treatment, prescriptions, therapy, severe pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of earnings, and loss of property.”

The agreement does not name the Greeley Police employee who was driving the vehicle involved in the crash. News release records from the Greeley Police Department do not include a notice about the crash in October 2022, nor did the department mention the incident in any of its four posts on Facebook the day after the crash.

As part of the settlement, Cano, Rodriguez and Garza agree not to file a joint lawsuit against the city, according to the settlement terms.

“It is understood and agreed by the parties that this settlement is a compromise of a disputed claim, and the payment is not to be construed as an admission of liability on the part of the city of Greeley,” the settlement terms read. “Claimants will not make any disparaging statement to any news media and will not post any information on social media regarding the city’s or the police department’s actions in response to the incident, other than to acknowledge that a settlement has been reached, and the amount thereof.

“Similarly, the city will not publish any statements that could reasonably be interpreted as adversely affecting the personal or professional reputation of claimants.”

Because the police employee involved in the crash has not been identified, it’s not publicly known if he or she remains on the job or suffered any professional repercussions.

Where does this money come from?

The city, like virtually every level of government, maintains a separate fund for expenses like paying for settlements of legal claims.

In its 2023 budget, Greeley had about $2.9 million in its liability claims fund, according to city documents. The city also budgeted about $1.7 million for human resources claims for this year, according to city documents.

It’s possible there are other pools of money the city maintains for legal claims; city budget documents are quite complicated, and the Gadfly isn’t a CPA.

So what’s next?

Council will consider the agreements’ terms at the Oct. 24 special meeting. It’s virtually assured that council will go into at least one executive session during the meeting in order to hear legal advice from City Attorney Doug Marek and his staff. Executive sessions are closed to the public, but no formal action can be taken.

But even if council doesn’t go into executive session, they still can vote on the agreements’ terms in open session, or they can send either agreement back to legal staff to make small changes.

Lawsuits could be filed against the city if council opts to reject either settlement agreement.