MORGANTOWN — A lawsuit filed on June 4 in Monongalia County Circuit Court by the Morgantown Shrine Club and Mountaineer Patrol names Monongalia County Commissioner Ed Hawkins and his siblings, Terry Hawkins and Linda Dimmick.
The suit claims the defendants violated a contract signed in 1986 by their parents, both of whom are deceased, which allowed use of the family’s property by the non-profit organization for a period of 99 years.
Hawkins confirmed Wednesday that he is aware of the suit but did not wish to comment publicly.
According to the filing, Hawkins, the executor of his mother’s estate, sent a letter to the plaintiff on Monongalia County Commission letterhead in April imposing restrictions or obligations not in the original lease agreement pertaining to access for both the plaintiff and defendants and the payment of real estate taxes.
The officer for the Morgantown Shrine Club, Tim Fitchett, is an employee of the county.
The lawsuit states that late last month Fitchett was advised by his supervisor, Anthony Giambrone, the county’s director of programs and services, that the locks on the gate accessing the property had been changed. The suit states that Giambrone has no ties to the property and was asked to relay that message by Hawkins.
Some of the details of the dispute have been submitted as a complaint to the West Virginia Ethics Commission.
The suit requests injunctive relief to prevent further intervention by the defendants and claims the actions of the defendants amounts to tortious interference as it has been “malicious and deliberate.”
The suit says the defendants are in breach of the original contract and seeking unjust enrichment by asking for property tax payments not provided for in the 1986 agreement.
The suit, filed on behalf of the organization by Debra Bowers of Kay Casto & Chaney, asks for a declaratory judgment determining the rights and obligations of the parties based on the 1986 lease agreement. It also asks that the defendants cover the cost of attorney and court fees as well as any other relief the court deems proper.
The Mountaineer Patrol is a unit of the Morgantown Shrine Club that participates in parades and other public events.
