By Associated Press
Muskogee, Okla. – MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) A U.S. Army reservist from Cushing has won a lawsuit that claimed the company he worked for would not rehire him after he spent a tour of duty in Iraq.
A jury in U.S. District Court in Muskogee on Thursday found Corrections Corporation of America violated federal law by not rehiring 32-year-old Dennis Weems. CCA which operates privately run prisons was ordered to pay Weems $53,754 in back wages and benefits.
Weems had worked for CCA for eight years and was a shift supervisor at the Cimarron Correctional Facility in Cushing when he was called for military duty in July 2008.
An attorney for CCA called the verdict disappointing but declined to say if the company will appeal.