Friday, December 27, 2002
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

STATE OF NEVADA EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION: Union files suit against state

Department of Corrections accused of punishing officers active in association

State of Nevada Employees Association organizer Lalo Macias sets up picket signs Thursday afternoon in Carson City before a SNEA news conference regarding a lawsuit the union filed against the state. Photo by Associated Press

A lawsuit filed Thursday accuses the Nevada Department of Corrections and prison wardens of punishing union-active corrections officers with unwarranted disciplinary action.

The State of Nevada Employees Association, which represents about 800 corrections officers in the state, said in the lawsuit that a series of officers have faced retribution for their union activity in recent months.

"Anyone who starts to speak their mind, they are targeted," said SNEA Executive Director Scott MacKenzie.

The state adamantly denies the allegations, and at least two union members questioned the union's tactics.

"Without the fights they create or promote, there is no need for the SNEA," said Veronica Damon, an SNEA member and senior corrections officer at High Desert State Prison.

Bill Kuloloia, another SNEA member and corrections officer at High Desert, said morale in the union is at an all-time low. "They'll distort anything," Kuloloia said.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court by Las Vegas attorney Richard McCracken. Named as defendants are Department of Corrections Director Jackie Crawford; Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa; wardens at some seven Nevada institutions; and others.

The suit lists a series of incidents that the union says demonstrates corrections officers are being targeted and that their First Amendment rights are being violated.

In one incident at Warm Springs Correctional Center in April, a pond was built at the facility for beautification purposes. The suit says Lt. Michael Hoffman, who is an SNEA member, ended up participating in the circulation of a questionnaire "relating to security concerns."

The suit says Hoffman later received a letter of reprimand for his union-related activities even though the pond was later filled in because an inmate fell in it.

In another incident, the suit cites the case of corrections Sgt. Samuel Covelli, who works at High Desert. He is the president of SNEA.

The suit says Covelli applied for promotion and was subsequently approached by the Department of Corrections earlier this year at about the time the DOC was facing budget cuts and layoffs.

"Director Crawford offered the opportunity of promotion in exchange for Sgt. Covelli getting SNEA Executive Director Scott MacKenzie to write a letter supporting her budgetary positions," the suit reads. The suit goes on to say that Covelli declined to do so.

Covelli, the suit said, is now the subject of an internal investigation related to his role at the prison's property room.

Warden James Schomig at High Desert said he was prevented by policy from commenting on the matter.

Contacted Thursday, Covelli said he too could not comment on the internal investigation. Regarding the lawsuit, he said:

"I believe in the Constitution of the United States, and I believe our criminal justice system is fair. The issues brought forth in our lawsuit need to be looked at so that the truth will be able to come out."

The lawsuit says a DOC mandate was issued in December stating that employee organizations are not allowed to conduct petition drives and recruitment while officers are on duty.

Louis Holland, a Nevada deputy attorney general in Carson City, said the state had not been formally served with the suit as of Thursday afternoon.

"We know of no acts on the part of the Department of Corrections or the attorney general's office that have violated the rights of any members of the SNEA," Holland said.

Holland went on to say that the state has gone out of its way to respond to any concerns the union has had. He said the state had not been contacted ahead of time about the suit by the union's attorney.

Both Damon and Kuloloia said they believe the union's efforts are misguided.

Kuloloia said when Crawford came to Southern Nevada for a town hall meeting to make herself available to corrections staff, "not one SNEA member showed up."

He said anyone at High Desert who has questioned the union leadership has been subjected to threats and intimidation, and that he has faced no problems in receiving union fliers and communications at work.

"My mailbox has been loaded with memos," he said. "Their bulletin board is loaded and full of postings."

"In the past month or two, 30 percent of the SNEA membership just at High Desert has resigned their membership," he said.

Damon criticized the union for its confrontational approach, saying it has cost its members any chance at collective bargaining.

"They are not bargaining at all," she said. "They started attacking these new wardens before they ever even gave them a chance. It makes it pretty obvious what their tactics are."

But MacKenzie said the lawsuit is absolutely justified and that over the long-haul, corrections officers will be able to voice concerns publicly about issues such as staffing shortages and safety.

"It's real bad," he said. "No information gets out to the public. ... We have the right to voice concerns publicly."