Mark Lawson’s attorney sent a second demand letter Thursday to the city of Sparks over his short-lived stint fire chief.
The letter gives a deadline of two weeks for those demands to be addressed, including possible presentation to the city council, or else “Chief Lawson will be left with no other choice but to seek relief in the courts.”
The city says, “Mr. Lawson is not currently employed with the city of Sparks. As this matter is now at the pre-litigation stage, the city of Sparks does not have any further comment.”
The letter seeks $441,218.83 – $250,000 for alleged damage to his reputation, $20,000 for attorney fees and costs, and the rest for wages and unused leave. It also requests health and disability insurance for six months. The first demand letter sought reinstatement.
The demand stems from a dispute over Lawson’s departure as a Sparks employee.
In early December, less than a week after Lawson started as fire chief, Sparks City Manager Neil Krutz announced in a since-removed YouTube video created for fire personnel that Lawson had resigned and serious criminal charges were pending against him. Four felony drug charges related to steroids were soon lodged against Lawson.
Lawson contends he didn’t resign and that he should be treated as innocent until proven guilty. His attorney, Jason Guinasso, has requested that Lawson be reinstated until the drug case is resolved — if not as acting chief then as an employee on paid leave.
Thursday’s letter from Guinasso thanks Sparks city attorney Wes Duncan “for engaging in a good faith dialogue with me regarding Chief Lawson.”
The demand document alleges Krutz severely prejudiced the public against Lawson and expresses hopes that a legal discovery process will reveal how Krutz knew about the felony charges before they were filed.
In an email to the RGJ, Guinasso said, “I am going to make a series of public records requests that will help us understand what the City Manager knew, who he spoke to, and when regarding Lawson.”
The letter says Guinasso and his associates researched defamation jury verdicts in Nevada, finding a wide range of amounts, and believe that Lawson “suffered at least $500,000 in damages due to his name being defamed in public.”
It continues, “Mr. Lawson is willing to accept a settlement of $250,000 as compensation for the injuries caused to him by City Manager Krutz’s defamatory statements.”
That figure does not include the demand for what they say he’s owed in lieu of a formal severance package for wages and benefits.
Division Chief Jim Kindness is serving as acting fire chief. He has postponed his retirement, which was planned in the next two months, until a new fire chief is in place.