Rackauckas Has Faced Several Employee Suits

Several lawsuits have been filed in the last six years against Orange County Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas by former employees who accused him of political favoritism and unethical behavior. Of these cases, Rackauckas was ordered to reinstate three workers, and he prevailed in two trials. Several cases are pending. Below is a rundown:

Wally Wade, Guy Ormes, Constance Bailey, Vickie Hix: The prosecutors were transferred the day after the March 2002 election to a family support office that the state later took over. They sued in March 2003, saying they were wrongfully demoted. Four months later, an arbitrator reinstated Wade, a candidate against Rackauckas in 1998 and 2002, and Rackauckas assigned him to assist the family support office. Ormes, Hix and Bailey work for what is now the state Department of Child Support Services. A judge last week dismissed most of their case and will rule this month whether they should be reinstated as prosecutors.

Joseph Smith: He also was transferred to family support after the election. Smith was one of three prosecutors who complained to state investigators about alleged wrongdoing in the district attorney’s office. His federal lawsuit is pending. He is in private practice.

Mike Jacobs: A jury in April rejected the veteran homicide prosecutor’s lawsuit saying he was fired in June 2001 for talking to state investigators about Rackauckas. An arbitrator reinstated him last year with back pay and benefits. He works as a deputy district attorney in Laguna Niguel. A separate federal whistle-blower lawsuit is pending.

Jane Shade: She also was moved to the family-support office the day after the 2002 election. She said in a lawsuit that the action was retaliation for her support of Wade’s candidacy. A Superior Court judge declined to reinstate her to her former position as a prosecutor. A decision on her appeal is expected this month. Shade is a law professor at Western State University College of Law.

Lyle Wilson: The investigator was placed on leave in February 2001 after Rackauckas publicly accused him and another investigator of stealing evidence related to their investigation of a Rackauckas friend and campaign supporter. Wilson sued for reinstatement in May 2001. The suit is pending.

Michelle Emard: Hired as a Rackauckas press aide in September 2002, Emard was fired eight months later. She sued for wrongful termination and defamation. Her lawsuit is pending.

Devallis Rutledge: Once a top prosecutor in the office, Rutledge sued after Rackauckas demoted him, allegedly because he refused to persuade his wife to drop a lawsuit filed against the office and former Dist. Atty. Mike Capizzi. His wife lost the suit. In December 2001, the county agreed to pay Rutledge a $45,000 settlement.

Karen Davis: An arbitrator ordered Rackauckas to reinstate Davis with back pay and benefits in 2002. She had been fired in 1999, accused of misusing her office computer to aide a Rackauckas campaign challenger. She retired this year.

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Compiled by Times staff writer Jean O. Pasco.