Judge Dismisses Lawsuits By Former Crossroads Employees

Staff Report

PRINCE EDWARD – Crossroads Community Services Board Chairman Sidney Smyth and Crossroads Executive Director Dr. Susan Baker have been at the center of a lawsuit filed by four former crossroads employees during the past year, but a ruling this week by Circuit Court Judge Joseph M. Teffey Jr. dismissed the civil lawsuits filed by the Plaintiffs.

In a court order entered on October 11, 2016 and signed by Judge Joseph M. Teefey, Jr. it states, “The Court’s decision on Defendants’ demurrers effectively dismisses each count pled in Plaintiffs’ complaints and Plaintiff’s did not file a request to amend their pleadings.”

The document continues, “Therefore, the Court directs the Clerk of this court to remove these matters from the active docket and place them among the concluded matters.”

This essentially ends the civil suits against Smyth, Baker and Crossroads. Under Virginia law, one may file a demurrer, a special plea, a motion to dismiss.  The demurrer is the equivalent of a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim.

Former Crossroads employees Cynthia Morris, Laura Baldwin, Marina Sinyard and Jonathan Crawford filed claims against both Smyth and Baker for defamation and wrongful discharge

The four plaintiffs filed the civil suits earlier this year in Prince Edward Circuit Court and were asking for actual and punitive damages combined for $800,000 against Baker and Smyth.

Smyth, Baker and Crossroads denied the claims and responded to the suits while filing demurrers.

The court document from Judge Teefey outlined the process that was taken in deciding if the statements that were classified as defamation are actionable. The document stated, “An actionable statement must be false and defamatory. The Statement must also impact one’s reputation so as to lower him in the estimation of the community or deter a third person from associating or dealing with him.”

It continued, “Mere insulting, offensive or inappropriate language is not defamatory; rather this language constitutes “rhetorical hyperbole.”

The defendants demur argued that the plaintiffs failed to state a claim because the alleged defamatory statements are not defamatory as defined by law.

An example cited in the document included defamation claims by Crawford and Sinyard stating that Baker made the following comments: “they are not as knowledgeable as you think,” “they are liars”; and, “they were dangerous to Crossroads and needed to be removed.”

The 17-page document then states, “Each of Baker’s statements is insulting or offensive, but these statements are her opinion that is not provably false. Speech which does not contain a provably false factual connotation or statements which cannot reasonably be interpreted as stating actual facts about a person cannot form the basis of common law defamation claims.”

The Plaintiffs against Smyth used some responses from him about their actions in emails as evidence of defamation claims. Following correspondence in an email where the the plaintiffs spoke about the issues they had with the job Baker was doing Smyth responded, “The Board fully supports Dr. Baker. If you find that you cannot work within these parameters, then I suggest that you and your cronies might want to look elsewhere for employment.”

In the document it states, “Plaintiffs assert that Smyth defamed them in his email by first calling them “cronies.”

The response notes that the word “cronies” means close friends and is synonymous with companion, compatriot or cohort. The document from Judge Teefey states, “The term is not even insulting, so this Court can find no defamation from Smyth calling the group close friends.”

Similar examples were cited throughout the document noting that the allegations against the defendants were not defamation.

The document also dismissed alleged violations against Crossroads and the counties named in the allegations and noted that the Plaintiffs failed to in the matter of wrongful discharge under the Constitution of Virginia.

Caption 1, just Sid

Crossroads Community Services Board Chairman Sidney Smyth was pleased to receive notice this week that the civil lawsuits filed against him by former Crossroads employees had been dismissed by Judge Joseph M. Teffey Jr.

Caption 2, Sid and paper either way

Crossroads Community Services Board Chairman Sidney Smyth was pleased to receive notice this week that the civil lawsuits filed against him by former Crossroads employees had been dismissed by Judge Joseph M. Teffey Jr.

He is pictured holding headlines from a Farmville area media business that highlighted the accusations against Smyth throughout this process.