The firing of former Eureka Springs Parks and Recreation director Justin Huss by then-parks commission chair Ruth Hager in October 2020 violated state law and the Eureka Springs municipal code, a special judge ruled Thursday, Jan. 30, in granting Huss’ motion for summary judgment in a wrongful termination lawsuit.

In an order, Special Judge David Goodson said a hearing will be scheduled in Carroll County Circuit Court to consider whether Huss should be awarded damages.

Huss, who was hired as parks director in early 2016, was terminated on Oct. 9, 2020. He was notified that he was being fired in a text message from Hager. The text message was sent two days after the parks commission held a special meeting at which Hager announced that commissioners would be going into executive session “to discuss a personnel issue.”

The commission returned to public session 59 minutes later. Hager asked if there were any motions and none were offered. After a motion to adjourn, the meeting ended without any further discussion.

Eureka Springs attorney Tim Parker filed suit on Huss’ behalf in February 2023, arguing that Huss’ termination constituted a breach of contract. Defendants in the lawsuit are the parks commission, Hager in her official capacity and Eureka Springs Mayor Butch Berry both individually and in his official capacity.

Parker filed an amended complaint in September 2023, seeking $450,000 in compensatory damages and $500,000 in punitive damages along with court costs and attorney’s fees.

On Dec. 12, Parker filed a motion for summary judgment, citing Hager’s testimony during a July 10 deposition that she alone made the decision to fire Huss.

During her deposition, Hager testified that the commission did not vote on firing Huss after returning from executive session because no decision was made during the executive session.

“That’s not when it was decided to fire him,” she said.

Title 12, section 12.04.03 of the Eureka Springs city code — the section that outlines “powers” of the parks and recreation commission — states that “(t)he Commissioners may employ or remove managers, janitors or other employees of any nature, kind or character, and may fix, regulate and pay their salaries. The terms, conditions and benefits of employment and rights of any such employees shall be in accordance with those afforded to employees of the city.”

Hager testified in the deposition that she made the decision to fire Huss and that she had the authority to do so as the commission chair.

“According to the policies it does not require the votes of the other commissioners to fire the director,” she said.

In her response to Parker’s motion for summary judgment, attorney Sarah Cowan of the Arkansas Municipal League referred to Chapter 2.54.01 of the Eureka Springs city code, which states that: “All votes needed to pass any action by any Commission, Board or other sub-entity of the City of Eureka Springs, Arkansas shall be by a majority vote of the whole number of the members of the Commission, Board or sub-entity unless otherwise required by State or Federal law.”

Cowan argued that the section is intended to clarify that a simple majority is necessary when an action by a commission, board or entity requires a vote.

“Plaintiff, however, interprets this language to mean that anything a Commission desires to do requires a majority vote in its favor,” Cowan writes. “For obvious policy reasons, such an interpretation would be absurd. No Commission would ever further any of its goals or objectives if a majority vote were required to be taken on every single matter over which the Commission presides.”

Cowan also argued that there is no provision in state law requiring a vote of the full commission in order to terminate a director.

Berry declined to comment on the summary judgment ruling in an email sent Tuesday, Feb. 4, citing the ongoing litigation.