Former Alabama VA commissioner sues Gov. Kay Ivey over termination
Former Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Kent Davis filed a civil lawsuit against Gov. Kay Ivey on Wednesday, alleging his firing in October violated his free speech and due process rights.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, also accused Ivey of wrongful termination, defamation and intentional interference with business relations because he has been unable to find other employment since getting terminated.
'I think anybody who reads through that complaint will see a pattern and practice of behavior there that I think we will go more into as we get into the facts of this case,' Davis said. 'Hopefully we will get to discovery, and there is going to be more that comes out in this case.'
Ivey's office said in a statement Wednesday that they were 'extremely confident that Governor Ivey's necessary actions will stand any court test there may be.'
The lawsuit is the latest clash that dates back to September, when Ivey accused Davis of mishandling grant funds from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, and filing what she characterized as a frivolous ethics complaint with the Alabama Ethics Commission that was later dismissed.
Davis initially agreed to leave the position at the end of 2024, but later that month the State Board of Veterans Affairs asked him to withdraw that resignation, saying it found no evidence of wrongdoing. Ivey then moved to fire Davis, accusing him of manipulating the board.
Davis and his attorneys argue that Ivey lacked the legal authority to fire Davis.
'The law was pretty clear that he was hired by the State Board of Veterans Affairs and could only be terminated by the State Board of Veterans Affairs, and only for cause,' said Kenneth Mendelsohn, an attorney representing Davis, on Wednesday. 'Initially, she tried to fire him without even going to the board, which certainly violated due process rights he had. And then she called a special meeting later to try and get the board to fire him, and they voted not to.'
Ivey signed a bill in March removing most of the board's powers and reducing it to an advisory role within the governor's office.
The Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs received $5 million from ARPA in June 2023 and an additional $2 million from the Alabama Department of Finance.
The governor's office last year accused Davis of not presenting grant applications for mental health applications funded through ARPA until January, just months before a June 1 deadline. Ivey said that raised questions from other department heads about compliance and proper fund use.
The Alabama Department of Mental Health terminated a contract with Veterans' Affairs in part due to these concerns. The Alabama Department of Finance later contacted Veterans Affairs with concerns about the grants, some of which the department said had little to no connection with veterans' mental health.
Davis' lawsuit argues that Ivey's accusation that Davis mishandled ARPA funds 'was false and Ivey knew or at least should have known it was false.'
'In fact, all funds were preserved and returned to the Department of Finance and, as a result of Davis's efforts, the grant program was successful without using any grant funds,' the lawsuit said.
According to the lawsuit, Davis decided to return the $7 million the agency received from ARPA to the Alabama Department of Finance. However, Davis wanted to continue with the grant program to allow organizations who were due to receive funding to continue to serve the mental health needs of veterans, according to the lawsuit.
'Simultaneous to Davis's efforts to salvage the grant process for veterans' mental health programs, the Alabama Department of Finance was investigating and responding to Commissioner Boswell's allegations regarding the ARPA funds,' the lawsuit states.
According to the lawsuit, Davis filed an ethics complaint against Boswell last July, alleging that members of the State Board of Veterans Affairs had brought concerns about the ARPA grant program and other veterans issues.
The Ethics Commission dismissed the ethics complaint in August. Ivey called the complaint frivolous.
Davis is seeking monetary relief stemming from his termination and for retirement benefits he is due.
'When I look back, every step that I and my colleagues in the Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs do was by the book, in accordance with the law,' Davis said on Wednesday. 'And sometimes we were obligated by the law to take those steps. There is the old adage, 'No good deed goes unpunished.' Is that the point we have in this country, you follow the law, you do what you are obligated to do under the law, and you are punished as a result of it, you are retaliated against as a result of it? Maybe that is the point where we are in this country.'
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