High court backs ruling for Watson

A dispute between Sheriff Rocky Watson and John Weick, who is a former sheriff’s candidate and the man who bought Watson’s security business, is back in 1st District Court following an Idaho Supreme Court ruling issued Friday.

The state’s highest court upheld most of the lower court’s ruling favoring the sheriff, but remanded the case back to 1st District Judge John T. Mitchell for more proceedings on two issues – Weick’s claim of fraud and one claim of breach of contract for nonpayment of payroll taxes.

Weick purchased the Watson Agency, a private security firm, from Watson and his wife, Mary, in December 2001. A year later, Watson sued Weick and his wife, Julie, for nonpayment on a $110,000 promissory note.

The Weicks’ attorney responded that they wanted to back out of the transaction and were resigning from the company’s board of directors. The Watsons didn’t accept the offer to rescind the transaction and the Weicks filed a counterclaim alleging breach of contract and fraud.

The Watsons later filed another claim to collect on nonpayment of a $45,000 promissory note.

Mitchell dismissed the Weicks’ counterclaims and awarded the Watsons a judgment in the amount of $228,193, including costs and attorneys fees. Weick appealed to the Idaho Supreme Court.

Weick also filed to run for sheriff against Watson in 2004, but in October was removed from the voter rolls after Watson challenged Weick’s status as a county resident.

Weick said he lives in North Idaho, but does spend a lot of time in California where he’s expanded the business. The Watson Agency now employs 400 people and operates in six states providing security services and selling state-of-the-art security systems. The agency also operates the city of Coeur d’Alene’s animal shelter.

Under Watson, the business had about 300 employees and operated in five states, Watson said.

Weick, a retired 20-year Los Angeles police officer, also was arrested in late July last year when Mitchell found him in contempt of court for failing to attend a May debtor’s exam in the lawsuit. Weick was ordered to spend five days in jail, and served his time in Shoshone County so as not to be in his political and legal opponent’s jail.

On Friday, the Supreme Court ordered Mitchell to rehear Weick’s claim of fraud, saying that the district judge dismissed it too hastily. Weick said that he was provided financial information prior to the sale that misrepresented the financial situation of the company.

However, the court noted that Weick made several trips from California to Coeur d’Alene to look into purchasing the Watson agency and had full access to the company’s books.

“He had a desk there. He took employees to lunch. He had unfettered access,” Watson said Friday.

“I paid more money than the company was worth,” Weick said Friday.

Weick also accused the Watsons of breach of contract for failing to pay payroll taxes due on Dec. 10, 2001, and Dec. 25, 2001.

While Weick was buoyed by the fact that those issues must be reheard in district court, Watson pointed out that the Supreme Court ruled in his favor on 13 of 15 points in the lawsuit.

On the points that were remanded, “they’re simple, they’re clear from our point to prove,” Watson said. The downside, he said, is he can no longer collect on the lower court’s judgment until the entire matter is cleared up.