Nate Spriggs during a city press conference announcing him as the new public works director in 2021.
Harrisburg has agreed to pay former Public Works director Nate Spriggs $150,000 to settle a civil rights case in which he accused Mayor Wanda Williams of unfairly firing him.
On Tuesday, Harrisburg federal court judge Jennifer Wilson filed an order dismissing Spriggs’ case against Williams, saying that the parties agreed to settle. City Solicitor Neil Grover told TheBurg Tuesday evening that the settlement amount, which wasn’t made public by the court, would cost Harrisburg $150,000.
The settlement includes no admission of liability, Grover stated.
The settlement came just a month before trial proceedings were set to begin on April 20. On Monday, the parties attended a settlement conference.
Spriggs’ 2022 lawsuit alleged that Williams fired him for refusing to promote her son Dion Dockens, among other allegations.
In a statement issued earlier this evening, Williams said that while she was prepared to take the case to trial, the city’s insurance carrier advised that settlement was the fiscally responsible route to “protect taxpayer resources.”
According to the judge’s order, the parties must act on the settlement within 60 days or either party may file a notice to reinstate the suit.
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