Thread: N.C.: DMV must rehire whistleblower

Jul 21, 2009 11:15 PM
DMV must rehire whistleblower
Worker had complained about immigrant policy
BY KRISTIN COLLINS, Staff Writer

RALEIGH - The state must rehire a Division of Motor Vehicles examiner who was fired after complaining that illegal immigrants might be getting licenses in violation of state law, a Wake County judge ruled Tuesday.
Jeffrey M. Brown, who issued driver licenses in a New Bern DMV office from July 2006 to April 2007, will get about $70,000 in back pay and the right to return to his job after winning a civil lawsuit against the state. Wake County Superior Court Judge Howard Manning said Brown was entitled to protection under the state Whistleblower Act.

Brown, of Trenton, sued the state in September 2007. At that time, the DMV's policy allowed some immigrants with temporary work visas to renew licenses for 4 or 8 years. That meant that their legal status in the country might expire before their licenses did, and it conflicted with a state law that said licenses should expire at the same time as visas. The problem did not affect new licenses, because they required more documentation.

State law has since tightened further, and the DMV has changed its policy to ensure that immigrant licenses expire at the same time as their legal visas. Illegal immigrants no longer have any avenue to get licenses in North Carolina.

"I was being forced to give licenses to illegals," Brown said after the ruling. His supervisors "specifically told me, 'Keep your mouth shut and keep issuing these licenses.'"

DMV officials testified that they were doing their best to comply with a law that, at the time, was in flux. They said their policy was to treat equally all those who presented a Social Security card, whether temporary or permanent.

"We could not discriminate," said Dolphus Marshburn, Brown's supervisor.

But they said Brown's firing had nothing to do with his complaints about DMV policy. They said Brown was a problem employee with negative attitudes about immigrants.

In his notice of termination, DMV supervisors cited three incidents that led to his firing. In one, he became angry when he didn't get requested vacation time. The other two involved immigrants.

In the first, his "suspicious" feeling led him to call the U.S. State Department to check a Middle Eastern man's visa. The man was handcuffed and detained until it was determined that his visa was legal. In another, Brown told a co-worker that he suspected a different Middle Eastern man of being a terrorist and made negative comments about Muslims, the letter says.

Brown said the first incident was a mix-up caused by a State Department mistake, and while he admitted calling the second man a "suspected terrorist," he denied making the comments about Muslims.

Brown said the real reason for his firing was that he ferreted out a DMV practice that violated state law. He said he waded through state statutes to determine that it was illegal after watching immigrants "nonchalantly" renew licenses and be treated like U.S. citizens.

Brown was terminated two weeks after meeting with Marshburn in March 2007 to express his concerns.

Soon after the meeting, a news story about the policy aired on a local TV station. His supervisors suspected he was the source of the story, according to his lawsuit, but he says he was not. On April 5, he was fired.

Brown said that, before meeting with Marshburn, he had never been made aware of any complaints about his job performance. He said he also was not disciplined or warned about the incidents involving the Middle Eastern men, which had happened months earlier.

Judge Manning agreed with Brown's argument that the timing of his firing was too compelling to ignore.

"He got canned," Manning said. "And one of the reasons was he was griping about issuing licenses that had no business being issued."

Brown said he has been working as an electrician on construction sites since losing his state job. He said he wasn't sure yet whether he wanted to return to DMV.

http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1616519.html

Jul 21, 2009 11:15 PM
DMV must rehire whistleblower
Worker had complained about immigrant policy
BY KRISTIN COLLINS, Staff Writer

RALEIGH - The state must rehire a Division of Motor Vehicles examiner who was fired after complaining that illegal immigrants might be getting licenses in violation of state law, a Wake County judge ruled Tuesday.
Jeffrey M. Brown, who issued driver licenses in a New Bern DMV office from July 2006 to April 2007, will get about $70,000 in back pay and the right to return to his job after winning a civil lawsuit against the state. Wake County Superior Court Judge Howard Manning said Brown was entitled to protection under the state Whistleblower Act.

Brown, of Trenton, sued the state in September 2007. At that time, the DMV's policy allowed some immigrants with temporary work visas to renew licenses for 4 or 8 years. That meant that their legal status in the country might expire before their licenses did, and it conflicted with a state law that said licenses should expire at the same time as visas. The problem did not affect new licenses, because they required more documentation.

State law has since tightened further, and the DMV has changed its policy to ensure that immigrant licenses expire at the same time as their legal visas. Illegal immigrants no longer have any avenue to get licenses in North Carolina.

"I was being forced to give licenses to illegals," Brown said after the ruling. His supervisors "specifically told me, 'Keep your mouth shut and keep issuing these licenses.'"

DMV officials testified that they were doing their best to comply with a law that, at the time, was in flux. They said their policy was to treat equally all those who presented a Social Security card, whether temporary or permanent.

"We could not discriminate," said Dolphus Marshburn, Brown's supervisor.

But they said Brown's firing had nothing to do with his complaints about DMV policy. They said Brown was a problem employee with negative attitudes about immigrants.

In his notice of termination, DMV supervisors cited three incidents that led to his firing. In one, he became angry when he didn't get requested vacation time. The other two involved immigrants.

In the first, his "suspicious" feeling led him to call the U.S. State Department to check a Middle Eastern man's visa. The man was handcuffed and detained until it was determined that his visa was legal. In another, Brown told a co-worker that he suspected a different Middle Eastern man of being a terrorist and made negative comments about Muslims, the letter says.

Brown said the first incident was a mix-up caused by a State Department mistake, and while he admitted calling the second man a "suspected terrorist," he denied making the comments about Muslims.

Brown said the real reason for his firing was that he ferreted out a DMV practice that violated state law. He said he waded through state statutes to determine that it was illegal after watching immigrants "nonchalantly" renew licenses and be treated like U.S. citizens.

Brown was terminated two weeks after meeting with Marshburn in March 2007 to express his concerns.

Soon after the meeting, a news story about the policy aired on a local TV station. His supervisors suspected he was the source of the story, according to his lawsuit, but he says he was not. On April 5, he was fired.

Brown said that, before meeting with Marshburn, he had never been made aware of any complaints about his job performance. He said he also was not disciplined or warned about the incidents involving the Middle Eastern men, which had happened months earlier.

Judge Manning agreed with Brown's argument that the timing of his firing was too compelling to ignore.

"He got canned," Manning said. "And one of the reasons was he was griping about issuing licenses that had no business being issued."

Brown said he has been working as an electrician on construction sites since losing his state job. He said he wasn't sure yet whether he wanted to return to DMV.

http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1616519.html