State will pay $325,000 in settlement with attorney

ELIZABETH M. GILLESPIE; The Associated Press
Tribnet

7/4/04

The state Attorney General's Office has settled a lawsuit brought by a former employee who was fired after being blamed for missing a deadline in appealing an $18 million verdict against the state four years ago.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Zilly approved the $325,000 settlement Friday and dismissed Janet Capps' lawsuit, which had sought $3 million in damages.

The settlement awards Capps $195,000, a full-time job with the state Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, three annual $10,000 raises and $100,000 to cover her attorney's fees.

Her job, which will not entail any legal work, will pay $50,000 and start Aug. 1.

"We are delighted and thrilled that a very painful experience for my client is behind her and that she can be a productive employee for the state of Washington as she always has been," said Capps' attorney, Suzanne Thomas.

Attorney General Christine Gregoire, who's seeking the Democratic nomination in the governor's race, said she was relieved to have settled the case, estimating that it would have cost taxpayers more than $500,000 if it had gone to trial.

"I consider this a compassionate and reasonable settlement to a very unfortunate mistake," Gregoire said. "Obviously taxpayers are well-served by the settlement, in light of what it would've cost to go to trial."

Capps was one of four attorneys who defended the state in the case of three developmentally disabled men who were sexually and physically abused in a state-licensed adult family home in Bremerton.

When the plaintiffs won the case in 2000, the $17.8 million judgment was the largest personal-injury verdict ever lodged against the state.

The Attorney General's Office vowed to appeal but missed a crucial deadline. Gregoire's office didn't learn of its mistake until 10 days after the filing deadline had passed and blamed Capps for it.

Capps contended she was scapegoated.

In a statement submitted to the court, the Attorney General's Office said it recently learned of pre-existing medical conditions Capps was being treated for at the time, which it "believes provides a partial explanation for the events surrounding the missed appeal."

Thomas refused to disclose what the medical condition was, saying a court order barred her from doing so. "Her medical stuff has nothing to do with anything, so we're certainly not going to talk about it," Thomas added.

Gregoire, however, said she would have handled the case differently had she known about Capps' medical condition four years ago. "Had we known then what we know now ... we would have done something to get help for this individual," Gregoire said.

Gregoire also suggested that the state Court of Appeals would not have ruled against the state when it filed an appeal requesting a 10-day extension of the deadline her office missed.

"We're relieved it's over, but I've got to tell you, we were ready to go to trial," Gregoire said. "But in the end, I have to look at the costs of going to trial ... and I wanted this individual to get on with her life."

Zilly dismissed Capps' lawsuit with prejudice, which means she cannot bring any further legal action against the state related to this case.

Gregoire's campaign manager, Tim Zenk, released a statement calling the settlement "a tremendous boost for Chris' campaign," saying the Attorney General's Office has won about 99 percent of the 250,000 cases it has handled in Gregoire's 12-year tenure.

"I know Chris' opponents had pinned their hope of winning the election on Chris losing in the courtroom," Zenk said. "But now the case has been brought to a successful end. So that won't happen."