A federal magistrate judge has ruled a scientist fired by a Honeywell-owned prime contractor for Sandia National Laboratories need not litigate his wrongful termination case in U.S. District Court.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephan Vidmar ruled Oct. 20 that National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia has not proven the lawsuit brought by Carlsbad, N.M., -based scientist Charles Oakes belongs in federal court, rather than state court.
As a result, Oakes’ case can be sent back to the Second Judicial District for the State of New Mexico, where it was first filed in January prior to being moved to federal court.
National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia is a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International, which manages Sandia National Laboratories for the National Nuclear Security Administration.
While the Sandia contractor headquarters is at Kirtland Air Force Base near Albuquerque, the defendants do not allege that “all pertinent events” occurred at the base, and fail to show “federal enclave jurisdiction,” Vidmar said.
Oakes worked as a limited-term employee for defendant National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia and served at a remote Carlsbad site. He alleges the defendants and others produced and covered up “scientific errors and research misconduct” related to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, which occurred outside the federal enclave site, the magistrate said.
Sandia has a longstanding support relationship with WIPP, going back to the 1970s when the federal government was evaluating the salt mine’s suitability for disposal of transuranic waste. Even though the plaintiff worked outside the enclave, in Carlsbad, and even though Oakes alleges a retaliatory firing was made off base, defendants maintain that federal enclave jurisdiction is present. The Sandia contractor “primarily operates on the enclave” and most employment decisions are made inside the federal enclave, according to the magistrate.
“Defendants’ arguments are not persuasive,” according to the magistrate. “Defendants do not allege, much less establish, that all pertinent events occurred on [the base],” Vidmar said. Oakes alleges that the manager who made the decision to fire him in retaliation for whistleblowing is in Carlsbad, N.M.
As a result, Oakes’ motion for remand is granted, the magistrate said. In sending the matter back to state court, the federal court official also rejected a motion to dismiss by the contractor and a couple of managers named in the case.
