December 1997 Page 23
A License is not a Rubber Stamp
by Louis G. Albano, PE
1997-98 National P.E.G. Chairman
"The latest battleground in this struggle to protect Public Health and Safety and the basic integrity of engineering licences is being waged by the former City Engineer of Idaho Falls, ID. His name is Ed Turner, and his story deserves to be known."
"A terrible injustice has been done to Ed Turner, an injustice that threatens the standards protecting our professional integrity and the health and safety of the public."
ENGINEERING TIMES
March 1998
Positive Uses, Responsibilities for the City Engineer Post
EDITORIAL NOTE: The following edited summary of a city engineer’s role, which was presented last year to the new city administration in Idaho Falls, Idaho, is a viable example of how professional engineers in government at the city or municipal level can best protect the public health, safety, and welfare of the public.
The major purpose of a city engineer is to protect the public health and safety of city residents. To accomplish this purpose in a cost effective, efficient manner, the following recommendations are brought to your attention.
The city engineer should be considered as a consultant to the mayor, city council, and other departments of the city government. To be effective in this capacity, open lines of communication between the city engineer and others must be created and maintained.
Placing the city engineer too far down in the city organization destroys his or her effectiveness and efficiency as well as deprives the city of needed expertise.
ENGINEERING TIMES
June 1998 Page 15
Idaho P.E. stands up for Rights on Seals
U.S. Engineering Piers Review
"According to a 1996 letter from the Idaho licensing board to Idaho Falls, the board implied that merely reviewing the work of a non-licensed person does not represent responsible charge and that replacing a licensed city engineer with a non-licensed administrator was improper, the ENR editors report."
ENGINEERING TIMES
July 1998
Stand up and be heard on Engineering Principles
by Ray Barnhart
"You licensed Pes, who have pledged to make protection of the safety, health, and welfare of the public "paramount" in the pursuit of your vocation, must do so not merely in words but through actions.
It must be done, if not merely out of self-preservation for your profession, then at a minimum, out of concern for human lives and for the nation."
NOTE: The above article was not specifically written about the Ed Turner litigation but the logic applies.
ENGINEERING TIMES
Aug./Sept. 1998
Engineer Defends Refusal to Sign, Seal Plans.
By David Siegal, Associate Editor
"Ed Turner used to tell people that the engineering department for the City of Idaho Falls was
"Probably the finest small-city engineering department in the country".
"As city engineer, Turner oversaw about $2.5 million in projects a year with a staff of 14 people and took great pride in the department’s work around town."
"If the outcome puts engineering back where it should be for the citizens of Idaho Falls or any other city U.S.A., it would be worth it," he says. "If not, it’s worth the fight that we tried. You have to try."
ENGINEERING TIMES
August/September 1999
LETTERS
Supporting a PE
To the Editor:
It is important that readers be reminded of the criticality of the Ed Turner case to health of our profession and the need to help Mr. Turner at this time. Ed Turner, P.E., was the city engineer of Idaho Falls, ID, who was demoted by a new city administration but still required to sign and seal plans over which he no longer had responsible charge. He refused because it was a clear violation of the Idaho Professional Engineer Licensure Law.
Placed in this impossible situation, he was eventually forced to resign. For several years now, he has been engaged in litigation against those who are responsible for this injustice. The litigation highlighted situations endangering the entire profession:
We’re all in serious peril if the Ed Turner litigation is not seen through to completion. Each one of us has the obligation to be part of our profession’s getting off its knees, standing up for the public interest, and demonstrating to the enemies of public safety that engineers are not an easy target. If we do not, we will lose what little influence we still have.
Every engineer should send a check for as much as he or she is able to Turner Engineering Litigation Assistance, P.O. Box 1341, Idaho Falls, ID 83403-1341.
Louis Comunelli, P.E.
Chairperson,
American Engineering Alliance
New York, N.Y.
Editors’s Note: Ed Turners’s suit against the city of Idaho Falls for wrongful termination was dismissed in August 1998. The city then sued Turner to recover legal fees. He settled out of court, agreeing to pay the city $10,000. Turner is now suing his former attorney for malpractice in handling his case.
ENGINEERING TIMES
Donald F. Lloyd, P.E. (Retired)
885 Linden Place
Idaho Falls, ID 83401
October 27, 1999
Engineering Times
1420 King Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-2794
To the Editor:
The Ed Turner case about "Responsible Charge" has never had its day in court. After nearly three years and over $20,000 in expenses, his attorney explained, that although he had an excellent case, he the attorney, had inadvertently filed with the court using improper forms. The judge ruled for the defendant City, stating he would not hear the plaintiffs case since it was improperly filed.
Ed Turner’s new attorney is currently trying to recover the costs of that wasted effort and explained that it will be a "case within a case". The original complaint must be shown as valid, then prove that it failed because of negligence. Of course, this requires time and money.
I feel this case has merit and deserves its day in court. Since I have long ago retired, the outcome will have no direct effect on me, but certainly could have a profound effect on the future of Professional Engineering. I urge all Engineers to show their support by way of a $10 or $20 donation to the Turner Engineering Litigation Assistance
P.O. Box 1341
Idaho Falls, ID 83403-1341
(208) 523-9568
Sincerely,
Donald F. Lloyd, P.E.