SPRINGFIELD, S.C. – Dennis “Bing” Jones, who was terminated from his position as Springfield police chief in April, has filed a lawsuit against the town of Springfield for breach of contract.

Jones claims he had performed his duties “ in the manner to which he was contractually obligated and in conformity with the legitimate expectations of the mayor and town council, yet despite such performance, he was terminated in or around April 2009.”

Jones is asking the court to award him “actual, consequential, special and punitive damages.”

The contract in question was a revised contract signed early in February by Jones, Mayor Marilyn McCormick and Police Commission Chairman Councilman Eddie Lee.

Jones, hired in 2004 by former Mayor Rusty Fogle, said early in February he was notified that McCormick and the town council were reviewing all employee contracts, including his. The new contract omitted his housing allowance, said Jones, who lives in St. Matthews. This created a hardship for him since gas was in excess of $4 a gallon at the time, and he had to travel back and forth from St. Matthews, Jones said.

However, the contract gave him the right to drive the patrol car to work and back, he said. It included health insurance, two weeks’ paid vacation and one week sick leave. The contract also listed his duties as police chief, which Jones said he continued to fulfill until his termination.

Shortly after the contract was signed in February, Jones said he approached McCormick and Lee about using the patrol car and was told at that time the contract was invalid.

In his charges against the town, Jones alleges the terms and provisions in the contract that he, McCormick and Lee signed in February constitute a “binding contract between the parties.”

McCormick did not return numerous phone calls from The Times and Democrat for comment. She has continuously declined to comment on Jones’ termination or the validity of the contract.

“It’s our policy that we don’t discuss personnel issues,” McCormick said in an earlier interview. “I’m not going to have a discussion on it.”

According to Jones, McCormick has never given him a reason for his termination.

“As far as I know, there were no complaints by residents,” he said. “She never told me about any.”

During the earlier interview, McCormick refused to respond about how her administration handled complaints about employees, or if she gave employees the opportunity to respond to complaints by residents.

“I’m not going to have a discussion on it,” she said at that time. “I’m not going to speak negative in any way, shape or form.”

But Jones says, “I think that the town has provided me with an injustice. In my career – right at 30 years – I’ve always tried to be fair, and I don’t think I should have been treated like this.”

The lawsuit is not against the residents of Springfield, Jones said.

“I enjoyed working for them,” he said. “It’s against the administration. The contract was a contract, but if it wasn’t in their favor, they say it’s not a legal, binding contract.”

Jones’ lawyer, Amy L. Gaffney of Gaffney, Lewis and Edwards LLC, said the town’s issue with Jones must be a personal one.

“I can’t imagine what the professional issue would be,” she said. “From all that we can tell, Bing was doing his job in the absence of any professional deficiencies. Then we can only assume it was a personal issue they have with Bing.”

Regardless of what the council or mayor feels, they are public officers, responsible to the citizens, Gaffney said. She said they should be able to put aside their personal opinions or issues and act in the best interest of the town and its citizens.

Springfield’s lawyer, James Walsh, was contacted, but he had no comment about the case.

“We don’t make any comments,” Walsh said.

n T&D Correspondent Dale Linder-Altman can be reached by e-mail at jerryanddale@lowcountry.com. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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