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Commissioners order full back pay and reinstatement for county animal welfare officer after grievance hearing
Summary
After public testimony from the employee and counsel, commissioners voted to reinstate animal welfare officer Brianna Montes with full back pay and benefits and to remove disciplinary marks from her personnel file.
El Paso County Commissioners Court on May 12 voted to make animal welfare officer Brianna Montes whole after a personnel grievance and administrative review. Following executive-session deliberations and public testimony by Montes and her attorney, the court moved to reinstate her, grant full back pay and restore benefits.
Attorney Robert Godet, who represents Montes, described a sequence of events the employee says began with sexual harassment complaints against a supervisor and culminated in disciplinary action against Montes after she raised concerns. Montes told the court she was placed on administrative leave, lost income and housing stability, and that the termination marked her personnel record in ways that inhibited job prospects. She asked the court for reinstatement, back pay and a clearing of her record; counsel also sought reasonable attorney-fee recovery under applicable law.
During the public portion of the meeting Montes described personal and financial hardship, including sale or relocation of livestock, vehicle damage and temporary housing, and said she suffers from anxiety that the termination exacerbated. Montes’s counsel asked commissioners to approve the settlement demand presented in writing at the hearing; lead county counsel and administration briefed commissioners in executive session on legal exposure and negotiations.
Action: After executive-session deliberations the court voted to authorize full back pay and reinstatement with restored benefits and to clear the disciplinary entry, as recommended by counsel representing Montes.
What’s next: County administration and the county attorney will execute the court-approved reinstatement and back-pay procedures and effect any personnel-file changes ordered by the court. If attorney-fee issues remain, counsel indicated they would be handled consistent with the statute and any court guidance.
