Attorneys representing Southern Tire Mart have asked Ector County District Judge Denn Whalen to order the City of Odessa’s new equipment services director to sit for a deposition as they consider whether they want to sue him for defamation.
According to court documents filed Thursday, Southern Tire Mart held a contract with the City from 2020 through July 2023 to provide tires and related services pursuant to an original 2017 contract with GCR Tires and Service. The document alleges that after new Equipment Services Director Chris Adams was hired in June 2023, he met with the local manager and other employees and during that meeting, Adams said he’d been able to prevent Southern Tire Mart from submitting proposals from a government entity in the past, but refused to specify what entity.
Moreover, Adams has also made statements to the media that Southern Mart had overcharged the City of Odessa in its billings.
Southern Mart denies the allegations and “would contend that such statements by respondent constitute defamation and further petitioner has a good faith believe that respondent does not possess the experience or qualifications to arrive at such conclusions in the first place,” the document stated.
According to the document, Southern Mart’s attorneys, Doug Perrin of Dallas and Paul Sewell of Kaufman, want to investigate a potential claim and are asking Whalen to allow them to depose Adams about his employment and personal history and experience, statements he’s made about Southern Mart’s products, services and billing/business practices.
During a June city council meeting, Adams told the city council the city spent $989,000 on tire replacement and repairs last year and he thinks they should only have spent $500,000-$550,000 given the size of the city’s fleet. He told the council he’d like to hire three tire technicians so the city can start doing their own tire repairs.
The City of Odessa has a policy of not commenting on pending litigation.
In recent months, the city has been sued twice.
In December, Odessa attorney Gaven Norris filed a lawsuit claiming Mayor Javier Joven violated the Texas Open Meetings Act when he refused to allow citizens to speak before City Manager Michael Marrero and City Attorney Natasha Brooks were fired. That lawsuit was dismissed because Ector County Judge John Shrode ruled it moot since the council later held a second meeting allowing citizens to speak before firing the pair again. Norris has said he intends to appeal.
A second lawsuit is still pending.
Former Assistant City Manager Aaron Smith also filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the city. He claims he was fired in March because he asked law enforcement agencies to investigate Joven for the same reasons Norris sued the city and for allegedly signing a contract with T2 Professional Consultants. The city contends Smith was fired for interfering in an investigation into a city employee who was allegedly tracking a female Odessa Police Department officer with GPS.
Documents obtained by the Odessa American under the Texas Public Information Act revealed Smith reported the employee to OPD because he thought his actions were potentially criminal. The employee, Leonel Ibarra, wasn’t not charged, but he was fired by the city.
