Former Scott City parks director receives $30K settlement, ending legal battle

Former Scott City parks director Phyllis Spinks, who took the city and former Mayor Ron Cummins to court over her termination, received a $30,000 settlement in exchange for dropping her lawsuit.

The Southeast Missourian obtained a copy of the six-page agreement from the city after filing a Sunshine Law request.

It is the second settlement the city has entered into with a former city official this spring. Former Scott City administrator Ron Eskew received a $40,000 settlement in exchange for dropping his lawsuit.

Spinks, in a lawsuit filed in Scott County Circuit Court in December 2017, alleged Cummins and the city engaged in gender, age and disability discrimination when she was terminated from her job Nov. 30, 2016.

Cummins had denied the allegations.

Under the agreement, the parties are barred from commenting on the settlement.

Spinks worked for the city for about 25 years, primarily serving as parks director, according to the suit.

Spinks had “an exemplary employment record and received regular raises and positive work evaluations,” her attorneys, John “J.P.” and Laura Clubb, wrote in the suit.

After Cummins was elected mayor in April 2016, he informed the Scott City Park Board members “they needed to fire Ms. Spinks, based on her age and length of service,” the lawsuit states.

Park board members refused to fire Spinks, so Cummins replaced the board members, according to the suit.

Cummins and the city then fired Spinks and hired Skylar Cobb, a man who was younger and “less qualified” to serve as parks director, the suit states.

Spinks planned to retire in 2018 when she turned 65, according to the suit.

“Defendants treated Ms. Spinks differently than other employees based, in part, on her age, gender and perceived disability,” the suit states. The city is accused of failing to stop Cummins’ conduct toward Spinks.

According to the suit, Cummins and the city made repeated derogatory comments about her age, sex/gender and disability or perceived disability, used abusive language toward her and fired her after she complained about the situation.

Spinks suffered “emotional distress and mental anguish” as a result of their actions, the lawsuit states.

The suit described the actions of Cummins and the city as “outrageous because of evil motive or reckless indifference to Ms. Spinks’ rights not to be subjected to sex/gender discrimination, age discrimination and disability discrimination.”

The suit sought a judgment of more than $25,000 against each defendant for emotional stress and the same sum for lost wages and benefits, as well as punitive damages.

In a statement released by her attorneys after the suit was filed, Spinks said, “I just want former Mayor Cummins and the city to be held accountable for their law violations and to make sure this doesn’t happen to any other city employees.”

The settlement agreement states the defendants deny “all of Spinks’s allegations.”

As part of the settlement, “all parties agree to refrain from making defamatory, derogatory or disparaging statements” in connection with the case.

Both Spinks and Eskew received settlement payments from the city’s insurance provider.

Eskew served as city administrator for 16 years before resigning in March 2017.

But in a lawsuit filed last year against the city and Cummins, he alleged he lost his job after he sought to prevent city officials from firing Spinks.

He contended the defendants violated the Missouri Human Rights Act.

In a deposition taken in the Eskew case, Mayor Norman Brant said that while serving as a councilman he orchestrated Eskew’s resignation without the knowledge of Cummins.

Brant testified he asked Eskew to resign because he believed Eskew had engaged in misconduct centered on personal use of city computer and a mower, as well as improper use of city credit cards.

Eskew, in his lawsuit, accused the defendants of “spreading lies” about his tenure as city administrator.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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