Former lawyer for San Diego sues, alleging retaliation for testifying against city

Earlier this yr, a jury awarded virtually $4 million to former San Diego metropolis prosecutor Marlea Dell’Anno in a long-running wrongful-termination case. Now a key witness in that trial has filed his personal lawsuit in opposition to town.

Mark Skeels, who served the Metropolis Lawyer’s Workplace for greater than 10 years earlier than he was terminated final fall, is suing town of San Diego, two non-public attorneys and a legislation agency that beforehand defended the Dell’Anno case.

In accordance with the authorized criticism, which was filed Might 20 in San Diego Superior Court docket, Skeels claims he was retaliated in opposition to after refusing to supply sworn testimony within the Dell’Anno case that was favorable to town.

“Defendant wrongfully and unlawfully retaliated in opposition to plaintiff for offering testimony in opposition to town and reporting unethical conduct by town’s counsel,” the lawsuit states.

“On the time plaintiff made the complaints, plaintiff had cheap trigger to imagine his complaints involved violations of state or federal legislation or laws,” it provides

A spokeswoman for Metropolis Lawyer Mara Elliott stated Skeels was relieved of responsibility in September for violating ethics guidelines.

“The attorneys who work in our workplace have an moral responsibility to guard privileged and confidential data,” spokeswoman Leslie Wolf Branscomb stated in an e mail.

“After an inside investigation, the Metropolis Lawyer’s Workplace decided that Mr. Skeels breached his moral responsibility and the principles {of professional} conduct,” Wolf wrote. “The Metropolis Lawyer’s Workplace takes these violations critically.”

Along with town, Skeels named attorneys William Value and Brian Ginter and the Burke Williams & Sorensen legislation agency as co-defendants within the swimsuit. The agency was employed to defend town within the Dell’Anno case.

Value and Ginter didn’t reply to requests for remark.

Now an lawyer in non-public follow, Skeels signed a pair of sworn declarations within the Dell’Anno case final yr after a gathering with Value throughout which Value strongly advised Skeels tailor his testimony to learn town.

Value additionally acknowledged that he knew Skeels and Dell’Anno — his one-time boss — had a previous private relationship. In accordance with the lawsuit, Value stated he would search to maintain that data out of the general public document if Skeels helped him win the case.

As well as, the swimsuit alleges, Value coincidentally met a girl named Kathryn McGhee at a social occasion in 2020. Value discovered that Skeels had been relationship McGhee however started flirting along with her anyway, the swimsuit stated.

“When McGhee rejected his advances and knowledgeable Value that she was buddies with plaintiff, Value ranted that plaintiff was ‘not a superb man’ and revealed that plaintiff beforehand had a relationship with Dell’Anno,” the swimsuit states.

At his assembly with Value final yr, Skeels stated Value admitted he might have instructed McGhee that Skeels beforehand dated Dell’Anno.

In accordance with the lawsuit, McGhee fabricated testimony at Value’s path about how she had discovered about Skeels’ relationship with Dell’Anno, saying in a declaration that she had checked out Skeels’ cellphone.

Value instructed McGhee that “individuals by no means go to jail” for perjury and that “individuals lie on the witness stand on a regular basis,” the lawsuit states.

McGhee later recanted her testimony, saying she was bullied, lied to and compelled to signal a declaration that was not true. An audiotape of that assertion was subsequently despatched to Metropolis Lawyer Mara Elliott, your complete Metropolis Council and the Burke Williams & Sorensen agency.

The San Diego Union-Tribune reported the allegations within the Skeels declaration in June 2021, simply earlier than Ginter deposed Skeels in preparation for the Dell’Anno trial.

Skeels met with then-Assistant Metropolis Lawyer John Hemmerling after the deposition to debate the testimony and indicated to Skeels that he wouldn’t be penalized for testifying in truth, the lawsuit stated.

“Hemmerling assured plaintiff that every little thing would ‘work out okay’,” the criticism states. “Hemmerling was nice with plaintiff.”

However the subsequent day, Hemmerling known as to say he was “extraordinarily dissatisfied” in Skeels and that Hemmerling thought they’d a greater relationship after working “so effectively collectively for 5 years,” the lawsuit stated.

Skeels was then instructed he was being positioned on go away from his job.

“Plaintiff believes that the change in Hemmerling and the abrupt determination to put him on administrative go away might solely be defined by the truth that his testimony on the deposition for Dell’Anno and his declaration concerning Value’s intimidation techniques supported Dell’Anno quite than town,” the swimsuit stated.

Hemmerling, a candidate for San Diego sheriff who’s more likely to make the November runoff, retired from the Metropolis Lawyer’s Workplace late final month — someday after the Union-Tribune rescinded its endorsement.

Dell’Anno, who was terminated in 2015 and filed her lawsuit in opposition to town in 2017, was awarded $3.9 million by a San Diego Superior Court docket jury in March.