Following a partially successful appeal, a former captain with the Waynesboro Police Department will see a portion of his lawsuit remanded back to circuit court after a recent opinion by the Virginia Court of Appeals revived a whistleblower claim against his former chief.
In 2022, Michael Martin, who once led an area drug task force, sued a number of local officials for $1.85 million amid claims of wrongful termination after his testimony in an Augusta County drug case prompted an investigation that ultimately led to his dismissal.
Martin's attorney, W. Barry Montgomery, of KPM Law, made a voluntary motion to dismiss the original lawsuit before refiling it in 2024 against the City of Waynesboro and Michael Wilhelm, a former police chief who became the city's assistant manager for public safety before retiring. The lawsuit was again partially dismissed in July by judge-designate Paul M. Peatross Jr., but Montgomery appealed.
On March 17, the court of appeals issued its opinion and ruled the City of Waynesboro remains out of the lawsuit based on sovereign immunity. The opinion also upheld the dismissal of a...
Grace Kang has worked as an attorney specializing in intellectual property and business law for 20 years, the last 16 in the greater Los Angeles area. A graduate of Stanford Law School, she said h...