A former spokesman for Connecticut's Department of Public Health who accused the state of firing him in retaliation for making whistleblower complaints has settled his wrongful termination suit against his former employers, court records show.
Av Harris, who served for a time as the chief liaison between reporters and the public health agency during the COVID-19 pandemic, was terminated from his job in January after raising legal questions about a fine the department planned to levy against a Bridgeport bar for violating pandemic safety protocols, according to his lawsuit.
While a judge dismissed the lawsuit in October, Harris agreed to drop any chance of appeal as part of a settlement negotiated between his attorneys and the state the following month, according to records released by the Attorney General’s office through a public records request.
The state admitted to no wrongdoing under the terms of the settlement, but agreed to pay Harris $44,674 in back pay and delay the effective date of his termination so that Harris could reach 10 years of service with the state and vest his retiree health benefits.
The settlement also prohibits Harris from seeking employment with the state during the next five years, and both sides agreed not to discuss the underlying facts of the case publicly.
“I am happy to have this matter resolved so I can turn the page and move on,” Harris said in a statement posted on Facebook last week, in which he also thanked his attorneys.
“I am...
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