Would You Do The Same????

Former Ole Miss assistant football coach Joe Cullen notified the school Monday he is seeking $434,000 in a wrongful termination claim.Cullen is pursuing a settlement for what he believes he stands to lose in salary and benefits in addition to damage to his reputation and mental anguish suffered from his March 11 dismissal from Ed Orgeron's staff, said Mike Wall, Cullen's attorney.Cullen, who coached the Ole Miss defensive line, was removed from the football staff eight days after he was arrested in Oxford on March 3 and charged with public drunkeness. Wall said Cullen was initially told by Orgeron his job was safe. Wall said Cullen was fired only after the arrest was reported in newspapers on March 10.
"We've taken the next step in the process to recover damages for the university's violation of Joe's due process concerning his job," Wall said Monday. "He was terminated when he should not have been. He's been thrown to the wolves over this."Cullen has been at his mother's home in Massachusetts since he was let go, Wall said. School officials said Cullen was reassigned and not fired, and that Wall was notified of the distinction on March 14. Ole Miss athletic director Pete Boone said he sent Cullen a letter Monday asking him to return to work.
"I sent Joe Cullen a letter today explaining the university's position," said Boone, reading from a prepared statement when reached at his home Monday. "It explains how we came to our conclusion and asks him to report for work next Monday. This issue of reassignment of duties is in line with the conversation I had with his attorney. I explained to Mr. Wall that Mr. Cullen was still employed and could be reassigned."Wall said he never spoke with Boone about Cullen being reassigned. "There has been absolutely no discussion that he's been reassigned," Wall said. "Joe has not been notified of any reassignment and I have not been."Wall said Ole Miss is at fault for "rushing to judgment and firing Joe" before his legal issue was settled. Cullen pleaded not guilty to the misdemeanor public drunkenness charge at Oxford Municipal Court last Wednesday and is set to face trial on May 4. If convicted, Cullen could pay up to a $182 fine.
In the meantime, Cullen has taken his fight with the university to the state level. Boone and Ole Miss chancellor Robert Khayat were served with Cullen's claim by Wall on Monday afternoon.According to the Mississippi Tort Reform Act pertaining to state universities, Ole Miss has 60 days to respond to Cullen's claim. Khayat and a state College Board panel will investigate the claim to determine if it has merit.
If it is considered to be a viable claim, the College Board's risk management office would then serve as an arbitrator between Ole Miss and Cullen.Sarah Nicholas, spokeswoman for the College Board, said few claims filed against the state's universities reach the risk management office."I would say we've only had a handful in the past 10 years," Nicholas said Monday. "Although there are few claims like this filed, it isn't absolutely unheard of."
Cullen is accusing Ole Miss with a breach of contract. Wall said Cullen was working under two contracts at Ole Miss: One that runs through June 2005 and another that includes an "automatic rollover" through June 2006.School officials say that no such contract with a rollover exists.
Cullen was set to earn $120,000 a year, according to his contract filed with the College Board, a copy of which was obtained Monday. Because Cullen was hired during the middle of the school's fiscal year, his contract runs from Dec. 20 through June 30. Boone said Ole Miss will honor the $64,356 Cullen is due through June.But Wall said Cullen has not received a payroll check since he left. Wall said he is willing to negotiate for a settlement lower than the $434,000 figure in the claim."That's not an in-stone figure," Wall said. "But after all of this, it's one Joe feels like he's entitled to."