State sued over actions taken against reformatory supervisor

Monday, March 28, 2005 | 9:22 a.m.

Cy Ryan

SUN CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY -- A lawsuit has been filed to hold Nevada in contempt of court for its action in its bumpy, two-year battle to fire the head group supervisor at the state youth reformatory in Caliente.

Attorney Adam Levine, representing employee Bruce Burgess, said Friday that District Judge Kenneth Cory has set April 11 for a hearing on the motion to hold the state in contempt for not following court orders in demoting Burgess.

But Jone Bosworth, administrator of the state Division of Child and Family Services, said the proper procedures were followed and that Burgess did not complete his year's probation in the job.

Burgess, who worked at the youth training center since 1991, was fired in September 2003 for illegally taking a controlled substance -- hydrocodone, a painkiller -- from the drug cabinet in the pharmacy.

State Hearing Officer David Ford in January ordered Burgess reinstated on grounds there was insufficient evidence to fire him. Burgess was to receive his back pay to September 2003, minus any income he earned while he was off the job.

When he reported for work in January, he was placed on administrative leave with pay and told to stay home while the state appealed the decision of the hearing officer to District Court.

"We believe you can't steal from the state and take a kid's medication," she said Friday.

In the meantime, Levine filed a suit to return Burgess to the job. He said Cory issued a writ Feb. 23 ordering the state to put Burgess back to work. When he reported for work on Feb. 25, he was demoted from his job as head group supervisor to assistant.

Levine said that demotion violated Cory's court order and he has brought a contempt of court action.

Burgess pleaded guilty to a felony in July 2003 for unlawfully taking a controlled substance. He was ordered into a drug diversionary program for three years. He said the felony would be erased from his record when he completes the program.

Burgess was acting head group supervisor since February 1997 and then promoted to the permanent position on March 17, 2003, said Bosworth. She said that Burgess "did not satisfactorily complete" his one year probation in the job and was being returned to his previous position.