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<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Two months before a jury awarded $62,000 to a former state prison guard for wrongful termination in a civil case involving suspected marijuana found in his car, that same man was sentenced to prison on a drug charge.</p><p>Ricardo C. Jackson, 31, served the minimum of a one- to 23-month sentence and was paroled from Wyoming County prison March 1. Then last week, <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/651806/sci-dallas-guard-awarded-62k-for-race-fueled-firing" target="_blank">a federal jury in Scranton found his 2011 firing from State Correctional Institution in Dallas was racially motivated</a>.</p><p>The recent conviction and a 2015 guilty plea to a separate drug charge that netted him a year on probation were not presented at Jackson&#8217;s civil trial, officials said.</p><p>Jackson&#8217;s attorney, Joseph C. Borland, said his client&#8217;s convictions have no bearing on his race-fueled firing.</p><p>&#8220;An incident in 2015 has no relevance to actions by the state in 2011 that a jury found to be illegal discrimination on the account of Mr. Jackson&#8217;s race,&#8221; Borland said.</p><p>Borland noted that while Jackson is seeking more than $152,000 in back pay since his suspension in January 2011, he is not seeking damages for after March 1. He declined to comment on why Jackson isn&#8217;t seeking reinstatement at the prison.</p><p>A Department of Corrections spokesperson did not immediately return a message seeking comment.</p><p>Jackson, of Factoryville, was fired after he tested positive for marijuana and admitted a weapon and ammunition found during a random search of his vehicle were his.</p><p>Jackson was charged criminally, and court documents filed by Borland say Jackson &#8220;pleaded guilty without verdict to possession of a controlled substance, meaning there would not be a conviction upon completing probation.&#8221;</p><p>At the civil trial, the state Office of Attorney General argued the reasons for Jackson&#8217;s firing were legitimate and had nothing to do with the fact he is black, noting weapons are prohibited on state property without prior approval.</p><p>But Borland, who filed suit against the Department of Corrections in 2013 on Jackson&#8217;s behalf, claimed employees of other races were let off the hook for similar infractions. He argued it wasn&#8217;t proven the substance found in Jackson&#8217;s car was marijuana and claimed a white employee who allegedly tested positive for cocaine remained on the job.</p><p>The lawsuit stressed the gun and marijuana were found in the prison&#8217;s parking lot, not within its walls, and as such didn&#8217;t pose a safety risk to other employees. The filing further argued the security department failed to investigate another employee who was in possession of a knife on prison property.</p><p><ins>For other local crime stories, <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/crime" target="_blank">click here</a>.</ins></p><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Ex-SCI Dallas guard served month on drug charge</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Joe Dolinsky</p><p>jdolinsky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Joe Dolinsky at 570-991-6110 or on Twitter @JoeDolinskyTL</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Ex-SCI Dallas guard served month on drug charge before $62K award for firing