U.S. Magistrate Judge Emile A. Henderson III has ordered the attorney representing the UVI Research and Technology Park in a whistleblower lawsuit to appear for a “show cause” hearing April 25 to explain why they shouldn’t be sanctioned for missing the court’s deadline to answer an amended complaint in the case.
Henderson issued the order Tuesday in V.I. District Court on St. Croix, while at the same time granting the RTPark up until April 22 to file a responsive pleading to former CEO Peter Chapman’s second amended complaint that had been due last Friday.
“The Court granted that out-of-time request because the remedy when a party fails to timely respond to a complaint is the entry of default and default judgment, which the Third Circuit has repeatedly held is disfavored when a case can be resolved on the merits,” Henderson wrote. “However, that does not excuse the fact that Defendants failed to adhere to a deadline set by this Court and only sought leave to obtain a new deadline after the original deadline had lapsed.”
Henderson noted that the court may issue sanctions to a party or attorney that “fails to obey a . . . pretrial order,” citing the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 16(f)(1)(C).
According to the order, RTPark attorney Michelle Meade sought an extension because Chapman filed a complaint against the park in a separate but related matter April 3 and “the parties sought to potentially consolidate the cases and streamline the actions before Defendants filed their responsive pleading.”
That did not sit well with Henderson.
“The new complaint in the separate case was filed eight days before Defendants’ deadline to file their response in this case. The Court fails to see why Defendants could not have moved for an extension any time in the eight days between when Mr. Chapman filed his new complaint and when their response was due,” the judge wrote. “Accordingly, and pursuant to the Court’s authority under Rule 16(f) and its inherent authority, the Court will set a Show Cause Hearing for Attorney Meade to show cause why sanctions should not be assessed against her or her client for failing to comply with the deadline set forth in the Court’s April 3, 2025 Order.”
Chapman filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the RTPark and its board chair, Edward Thomas, last November, alleging violations of the Civil Rights Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, including retaliation and discrimination. He filed the second suit alleging discrimination on April 3. In it, he claims he was fired 55 days after informing Thomas in January 2024 that he had cancer and would need accommodations to travel to the mainland for treatment.
Chapman became executive director of the public-private entity in September 2018. His contract was renewed for a three-year term in 2021, but the RTPark board voted against renewing his contract a second time during a meeting in April 2024. At the time, he was earning an annual salary of $170,000, plus a monthly housing allowance of $5,200, and was eligible for an annual bonus of up to $40,000.
On Wednesday, the RTPark announced that Thomas retired as board chairman on March 31 and is being replaced by St. Croix native and University of the Virgin Islands graduate Ian Tomlinson, following his unanimous selection by the board at its meeting on March 20.
Tomlinson, who has served on the RTPark board for four years, is CEO and cofounder of Omni Systems, Inc., a “digital transformation company” headquartered in McLean, Virginia, that works with Fortune 500 companies, federal and state agencies, and the Virgin Islands government, according to the release.
