Pharr responds to former chief’s discrimination lawsuit

Attorneys for the city of Pharr have filed a response to a lawsuit filed in November by former city manager and chief of police Andy Harvey.

The response, which was filed on Monday, denies the allegations made by Harvey that he faced discrimination from the city as a result of his post-traumatic stress disorder.

According to its response, the city of Pharr “generally denies all material allegations contained in (Harvey’s) Petition and calls upon (Harvey) to prove (his) allegations by a preponderance of the evidence as required by the laws of the State of Texas and the Rules of this Court.”

In the original complaint, filed by Harvey’s attorney Mark Sanchez on Nov. 13, they claim that members of the Pharr City Commission, including Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez, accused the former police chief of being unfit for his roles with the city due to his PTSD and forced him to resign.

Harvey and his attorney are seeking monetary relief between $200,000 and $1 million from the city, as well as injunctive relief.

The lawsuit is the latest in an ongoing saga involving Harvey and the city of Pharr, including his arrest on Sept. 23 for allegedly making a silent abusive call to 911 and resisting arrest, as well as an additional open records lawsuit filed on June 9 against the city of Pharr attempting to get the court to compel Pharr to release items requested under the Texas Public Information Act.

An initial hearing has yet to be scheduled.