Suit Against County CEO Dropped

Former Santa Barbara County Public Defender James Egar agreed to drop his harassment lawsuit against County CEO Mike Brown, filed two years ago. Details of the settlement are scarce, but Egar had charged that Brown had screamed in his face, spitting in the process, with the intention of humiliating Egar in front of other county administrators. Egar had been complaining that his department-which provides legal defense to those charged with criminal offenses-was so overwhelmed that his deputies and investigators were coming down sick from the stress. Brown opted to go outside the County Counsel’s office to secure legal representation. Although the amount spent on the representation is supposed to be a matter of public record, county spokesperson William Boyer declined to state how much the county spent on Brown’s defense.