No settlement for nurses
PECOS After a second round of mediation, attorneys failed to reach a settlement in a lawsuit filed by two former nurses who claim they were wrongfully terminated from Winkler County Memorial Hospital after they anonymously reported a doctor to the state medical board.
“It was a little better than nothing, but it was way short of anything,” Brian Carney, an attorney for the nurses, said of the most recent talks, which took place last month in Austin.
At a pre-trial hearing Monday, U.S. District Judge Rob Junell set the case for trial Nov. 16. The judge said he would not order a third round of mediation unless both sides agreed it would be worthwhile.
“This may be something that just has to be tried,” Carney said during the brief hearing.
Attorneys for both sides said they would be ready for trial this fall.
Anne Mitchell and Vickilyn Galle of Jal, N.M., sued the hospital and several county officials, including Sheriff Robert L. Roberts Jr., District Attorney Mike Fostel and County Attorney Scott M. Tidwell, after they were fired and prosecuted for reporting Dr. Rolando G. Arafiles Jr. to the Texas Medical Board. The nurses said they were gravely concerned about Arafiles’ medical practices, particularly in the emergency room, but Roberts and Tidwell accused the nurses of filing the complaint “in bad faith” as part of a personal vendetta they waged against Arafiles.
Mitchell was acquitted in February of one count of misuse of official information, a third-degree felony, in a trial that attracted national attention. Tidwell dropped the charges against Galle shortly before Mitchell’s trial.
The former nurses are seeking compensation for lost wages and damages for “emotional pain and suffering.” They claimed a vindictive prosecution deprived them of their civil rights.
The defendants have claimed varying degrees of immunity, though Junell has yet to rule on motions for summary judgment. On Monday, Junell permitted the nurses’ attorneys to take limited depositions from Tidwell and Fostel.
Though the case is still months from conclusion, it is already costing the Winkler County Memorial Hospital. The Department of State Health Services last month fined the hospital $15,850 for a series of violations involving Arafiles’ hiring and medical practices. Court documents show Arafiles had a restricted license when he was hired to work at the hospital.
The Texas Medical Board, at its regular meeting next month, is expected to make public further disciplinary action against Arafiles. Lawyers with knowledge of the case said Arafiles faces several years of probation and a hefty fine.
