Cabarrus says it doesn’t owe former manager $289k because he was fired for cause
Cabarrus County says former County Manager Sean Newton was fired for cause and is not entitled to nearly $290,000 in severance pay, according to its first court response to his lawsuit.
The filing, submitted Wednesday in Cabarrus Superior Court and first reported by The Cabarrus Compass, is the county’s first formal rebuttal to Newton’s lawsuit seeking severance after he was fired just five months into the job. Newton sued the county in May, alleging commissioners falsely claimed he was fired for cause in order to avoid paying him 12 months of severance required under his contract.
The case follows another severance lawsuit brought by Newton’s predecessor, Mike Downs, that ended with Cabarrus County paying him $489,000 to settle the dispute.
Court filings state commissioners discussed allegations that Newton yelled at people and was not in the office during hours employees were expected to be present and available. The county says those were not the only reasons for his firing discussed during the executive session. It did not state any specific source or details related to complaints about Newton yelling.
The county argues Newton was terminated for cause and therefore is not entitled to severance, disputing his interpretation of the contract by arguing its definition of “cause” is “extremely broad” and not limited to the examples specifically listed in the agreement.
Newton’s lawsuit takes the opposite position.
His complaint alleges the county’s stated reasons for firing him were “pretextual” and that the real motivation was “political jockeying and retaliation among the Commissioners.” The lawsuit further argues that, even if the allegations raised during the closed session were true, they would not satisfy the contract’s definition of “for cause.”
Commissioners voted 3-2 to fire Newton during an August meeting. At the time, Commissioner Laura Blackwell Lindsey, who voted against firing Newton, told The Charlotte Observer the decision amounted to a “witch hunt” and “political retaliation” tied to the board’s earlier decision to fire former County Manager Mike Downs.
Downs, who served as county manager for more than a decade, was fired months earlier in January 2025 after another divided vote by commissioners.
Downs later sued Cabarrus County, alleging he was denied roughly $488,000 in severance and other compensation guaranteed under his employment agreement. The county ultimately agreed to pay him $489,000 to settle the lawsuit.
In addition to disputing Newton’s severance claim, the county also opposes his request for a recording of the closed session where commissioners discussed his termination. Newton argues he is entitled to the recording because he attended the executive session and that it could help determine whether he was lawfully fired for cause and whether he is entitled to severance.
The county disagrees, arguing the recording remains confidential because the executive session involved consultation with attorneys on multiple legal matters as well as discussion of a personnel matter. Releasing it, the county argues, would undermine the purpose of the closed session.
The county is also asking the court to dismiss Newton’s complaint, deny his request for declaratory relief and attorneys’ fees, and rule that he recover nothing from the county.
The lawsuit remains pending as Cabarrus County moves forward under new leadership.
Earlier this month, commissioners unanimously hired veteran public administrator John Eller IV as county manager following a national search. Commissioners repeatedly said the process had helped repair divisions on the board after the contentious firings of Downs and Newton, with Commissioner Kenny Wortman saying members realized they “had to get this one right.”
