The Pima County judge presiding over a $2.3 million lawsuit filed against Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels and his former jail chaplain has ordered a series of deadlines to move the case toward a jury trial next year.
Judge Jeffrey Sklar will conduct a trial setting conference March 18, 2022 in the lawsuit stemming from guilty pleas entered by Doug Packer in November 2019 to raping one female inmate and sexually assaulting five others in the county jail between 2014 and 2019.
But first, Sklar has to ensure the attorneys comply with 12 other deadlines, the first of which is next week when the parties must exchange initial disclosure statements no later than Aug. 12.
The next deadline is Oct. 1 by which the attorneys must disclose any areas of expert testimony expected at trial, and an Oct. 8 deadline to disclose the identify and opinions of any expert witnesses.
By Nov. 15, all pre-deposition discovery must be exchanged, and in December there are three deadlines, including disclosure of any rebuttal expert opinions and lay (non-expert) witnesses.
According to Sklar’s order, “no party shall use any lay witness, expert witness, expert opinion, or exhibit at trial not disclosed in a timely manner, except upon order of the Court for good cause shown or upon a written or an on-the-record agreement of the parties.”
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In February 2022, all depositions of the parties, expert witnesses, and lay witnesses must be completed. A deposition is a process by which one party can question another party or a witness under oath. The deposition takes place out of court without a judge present, and can be introduced as evidence at trial in some instances.
Unless there are any motions filed or disputes about deadline compliance Sklar will not see the parties in court until March 18 when he schedules a weeklong trial for some time in Summer 2022.
But before then, the parties must participate in a court-ordered private mediation.
“All attorneys and their clients, all self-represented parties, and any non-attorney representatives who have full and complete authority to settle this case shall personally appear and participate in good faith in this mediation, even if no settlement is expected,” Sklar’s order states.
Packer is serving a 15-year prison sentence as part of a plea deal. The lawsuit on behalf of two of his six victims alleges Dannels and other CCSO employees knew of Packer’s “propensity to engage in sexual conduct with inmates” but took no steps to prevent or punish such conduct.
In his answer, Dannels said he and his office had no prior knowledge of Packer’s sexual misbehavior and were unaware of Packer’s propensities. When the misconduct was reported, CCSO officials immediately ensured the inmates were protection and not subjected to retaliation, Dannels’ answer states.
Packer and his wife have been served the lawsuit but have not filed an answer. Attorneys for the two plaintiffs informed Sklar in June they intend to pursue a default judgment.
Cochise County was initially listed as a third defendant in the lawsuit. Sklar dismissed the entity last year, noting Dannels is statutorily responsible for operation of the county jail as the elected sheriff.
Public records show Packer became the jail’s fulltime chaplain in 2012 after serving in a volunteer capacity for several years. He was arrested at his home in January 2019 after the two inmates named in the lawsuit were forced to go to his jail office where one woman was physically restrained and sexually assaulted while the other was forced to watch.
Sheriff’s investigators collected evidence -including DNA and men’s underwear- which corroborated the women’s allegations. The investigation also revealed dozens of current and former inmates were interviewed, many of whom alleged Packer provided the women special privileges over the years.
Some complained Packer used those privileges to pressure women to put up with unwanted sexual contact including kissing, groping, and intercourse.
Cochise County was served a notice of claim in April 2019 with an offer to settle the women’s claims for a combined $2.3 million. The county rejected the demand. Venue for the lawsuit was transferred to Pima County last year at the direction of Cochise County’s presiding judge