Denver city attorney responds to Denver International Airport lawsuit, calls claims "upsetting"

One day after Denver International Airport's general counsel filed a federal lawsuit against the city and three of Mayor Mike Johnston's appointees -- alleging unethical and potentially illegal behavior, and claiming they were plotting to oust airport CEO Phil Washington -- one of the appointees, City Attorney Miko Brown, responded by saying of the claims in the lawsuit, "I know they're upsetting."

In an email sent to all employees in the City Attorney's Office, Brown wrote, "The alleged claims are untrue." CBS Colorado obtained a copy of the email.

Denver International Airport's top lawyer, Everett Martinez, filed the lawsuit the previous day, stating he had been stripped of his job responsibilities and placed on administrative leave last week. According to the lawsuit, this occurred after he shared legal advice with Brown, Chief Financial Officer Nicole Doheny, and the mayor's Chief Strategist Jeff Dolan that conflicted with how they handled two major city issues: the Park Hill golf course land swap and a city council measure related to Key Lime Air.

Rob Nespor, director of the City Attorney's Employment and Labor Law Section, also emailed staff, stating that the Martinez lawsuit "contains attorney-client privileged information." He instructed employees to forward any media inquiries about the case to the mayor's office.

"The City vehemently disputes the claims and allegations outlined in the complaint, which are demonstrably false and offensive," Nespor wrote. "While we're disappointed that he (Martinez) chose to respond in this manner, we remain focused on our work."
Nespor added that Martinez was placed on leave for violating "multiple" Rules of Professional Conduct, but did not specify which rules were allegedly violated.

See the lawsuit below: