Appeal's court upholds Starr County employee's $1.4 million lawsuit for wrongful termination

A U.S. court of appeals upheld a jury verdict Tuesday ordering Starr County to pay its employee, Hilda Garza, who is running for Starr County attorney, $1.4 million in damages related to a wrongful termination case from 2012.

In 2013 a federal jury sided with Garza, a Starr County assistant attorney, after she sued her boss and current county Attorney Victor Canales, claiming she was fired for announcing she would run against Canales’ political allies in the 2012 Rio Grande City school board election, according to court documents.

After a two-day trial, a federal jury ruled Garza be reinstated and that Canales, along with the county, should be liable for $1.4 million in damages and attorney fees. U.S. District Court Judge Randy Crane upheld the jury’s verdict to reinstate Garza but denied the monetary award, according to Jenny Lee Smith, who is representing Garza.

“We are extremely pleased that the court of appeals agreed with Ms. Garza’s arguments, reversed the trial court’s judgment, and reinstated the jury’s $1.4 million verdict in her favor,” Smith said Wednesday in an email.

Read more: http://www.themonitor.com/news/local/appeal-s-court-upholds-employee-s-million-lawsuit-for-wrongful/article_f10a70f6-7860-11e5-ad9f-0faa8a04f339.html