“I have not had the chance to meet with the board yet so I want to hold back my comments until after I speak with the board,” attorney Michael Dotts said. “I will send you an email as soon as I have had that chance. Otherwise, all I can do is state the obvious, that I am of course, very pleased by the decision.”
On Tuesday afternoon, Guam District Court Judge Frances M. Tydingco Gatewood issued a 26-page ruling on Fernandez’s lawsuit and the NMC regents’ counterclaims.
Gatewood dismissed Fernandez’s counts I and II [conspiracy] charges with prejudice “because the qualified immunity bars those counts.”
The court also dismissed all other counts without prejudice “because counts predicated on claims within the court’s supplemental jurisdiction should be dismissed when, as here, the federal claims are dismissed before trial.”
The court said NMC’s counterclaims were also dismissed without prejudice.
“The individual defendants are entitled to summary judgment in their favor on Count I, because [Fernandez] has failed to adduce any evidence upon which a rational trier of fact could find that they violated one of her ‘clearly established’ rights,” Gatewood said.
“The individual defendants are entitled to summary judgment on Count II for essentially the same reason. All other counts are within the court’s supplemental jurisdiction only, and therefore properly dismissed once the federal claims have been dismissed,” Gatewood added.
Fernandez. through her lawyer Brian Sers Nicholas, earlier asked the federal court to dismiss the counter lawsuit filed by NMC against her.
Fernandez sued then-NMC regents Janet King and Paz Younis as well as regents Frank Rabauliman and Andrew Orsini for violation of action under the color of law and conspiracy, while the college and 10 Does were sued for wrongful termination and breach of contract.
NMC through attorney Dotts countersued Fernandez for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty. NMC wanted a jury trial.
The NMC regents named in the lawsuit fired Fernandez in April 2010.
