New Hanover County has reached a settlement with former animal control director Jean McNeil, whose employment was terminated earlier this year.
McNeil appealed the firing, and that appeal was settled by the county’s insurer, who offered McNeil $120,000, according to a memo to the board of commissioners from County Attorney Wanda Copley.
Commissioners approved the settlement agreement at their meeting on Monday. The “settlement of administrative appeal” was included in the consent agenda and touched on in the board’s agenda briefing the previous week.
According to the memo, the only amount the county paid was a $25,000 insurance deductible. The agreement, signed by McNeil, states that she will not pursue further legal action.
McNeil was dismissed in February after an apparent dispute with county officials over compensation for animal control employees who worked during Hurricane Irene. McNeil told area media outlets she requested emergency, or overtime, pay for those employees, but was denied.
Since her termination, the animal control services department has essentially been absorbed by the county sheriff’s office, which now maintains an animal services unit.
Jonathan Spiers can be reached at (910) 772-6313 or [email protected].
