Cary, former employee settle civil rights lawsuit

A former Cary public works director settled his federal civil rights lawsuit against the village Thursday, court records state, ending 16 months of litigation over claims he was fired for complaining about village employees working on elected officials' private property.

The settlement came Thursday as attorneys for the village and former assistant director of maintenance Robin Mohr met with U.S. District Court Judge Maria Valdez to discuss an out-of-court resolution.

Terms of the settlement were not immediately available.

Mohr sued the village in January 2007, claiming he was fired in August 2005 for being too outspoken over village policies and the use of village workers. Among his complaints, the suit alleged, was that village employees removed a tree from the home of Mayor Steve Lamal and delivered mulch to village trustees' residences.

Lamal and other village officials denied the allegations.

The village said Mohr, a village worker for three decades, was fired after failing a drug test. Mohr, a village employee for 30 years, tested positive for marijuana after returning from a trip to Jamaica in July 2005, court documents state.

However, Mohr's suit claimed at least three other village workers failed drug tests but received only 10-day suspensions and were encouraged to seek substance abuse treatment.

Mohr's attorneys and the village agreed to settlement talks last month after he scored a legal victory in federal court. Despite the village's objections, a court ruled that officials had to turn over to Mohr's lawyers drug test results and personnel files of other employees.