(The Center Square) – A Thurston County Superior Court judge has rejected a motion by the Washington State Department of Transportation, represented by Pacifica Law Group, Attorney General Nick Brown’s former law firm, for sanctions against a former employee whistleblower.
Scott Smith worked at WSDOT as an economist and claims he was fired after refusing to suppress findings that carbon auctions under the Climate Commitment Act would add 40 to 50 cents to the retail price of a gallon of gas. Smith filed a lawsuit, but then filed for a voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit.
WSDOT’s sanctions demanded that Smith and the Citizen Action Defense Fund that represented him pay the state agency’s costs and fees.
“It was absolutely ridiculous that WSDOT pursued a baseless motion for sanctions,” CADF Executive Director Jackson Maynard said in a statement. “Not only was it a colossal waste of time for all involved, it racked up more billable hours for Pacifica Law Group – all of which are paid for by taxpayers.”
He also wrote that “had the Court not followed the law here, it would have sent a clear message to all potential or future whistleblowers that dare to hold the government accountable: do the right thing, and the State will trample you. We’re glad the judge ruled on the side of the law and will continue to do what we always do – fight for government transparency and stand up for the little guy.”
One of the arguments made in WSDOT’s motion for sanctions was that Smith deleted text messages on his phone that were found on other employees’ phones. WSDOT had requested a forensic examination of Smith’s phone, but it was not conducted prior to the lawsuit’s voluntary dismissal.
WSDOT’s case filing also argued that “suspicious timing (of voluntary dismissal) and other facts make it highly likely these ‘lost’ text messages were deleted by Smith himself, though only a forensic examination of his phone could ascertain that with certainty.”
In a statement to The Center Square, WSDOT wrote that “while we are disappointed that this request for sanctions wasn’t successful, we were reassured by the Court’s ruling. Judge [Anne] Egeler noted that Smith’s failure to preserve text messages and other documents was ‘breathtaking’ and ‘extremely troubling,’ and that this case was a clear ‘victory’ for WSDOT.”
The WSDOT statement further noted that “only ‘with reluctance’ did the judge deny WSDOT’s request for sanctions because, she concluded, a court lacks authority to issue sanctions for spoliation of evidence after a case has been dismissed. We are consulting with our legal team to determine our next steps.”
