Local News in Brief : Vista

A Superior Court jury returned a verdict Tuesday for punitive civil damages on behalf of Asst. U.S. Atty. Steve Nelson, but the amount of the judgment was sealed and will not be awarded. In exchange, the defendant has agreed not to contest the $1.6 million in compensatory damages awarded by the same jury last week.

The jury found Friday that Nelson was the victim of malicious prosecution, intentional infliction of emotional distress and other injuries as the result of litigation sparked by William Shaw, a Los Angeles attorney who once worked with Nelson in the U.S. attorney’s office in San Diego.

The two had been involved in real estate investments that had gone sour in Texas and Arizona, and Shaw at one point claimed he was the victim of fraud by Nelson. Shaw ultimately dropped his lawsuit, but Nelson pursued the issue with his suit against his former colleague, claiming his reputation had been tainted.

On Friday, the jury not only awarded Nelson and his wife, Nancy Nelson, more than $1.6 million in compensatory damages from Shaw, but it also found that Shaw was guilty of malice, fraud, oppression and despicable conduct--findings that led to further deliberations for punitive damages.

But Milton Silverman, Nelson’s attorney, said Shaw’s representatives agreed outside the Vista courtroom Tuesday not to contest the jury’s $1.6-million award if Nelson would agree not to seek further punitive damages.

The jury deliberated the punitive damages anyway so Nelson could seek the additional damages if Shaw’s insurance companies do not pay Friday’s award.

Superior Court Judge Don Martinson privately read the jury’s decision for punitive damages, but he did not reveal the amount and ordered the verdict sealed.

“This was a legal and moral victory,” Nelson said after Tuesday’s settlement. “This was a long ordeal that started almost nine years ago, and I now feel vindicated and am ready to open a new chapter in my life.”

Nelson said that because of the pending litigation, he had removed himself from prosecuting drug cases in the U.S. attorney’s office.

“Integrity is everything, and if you try cases, allegations like these could be used and exploited by other participants,” he said. “Now, I can get back in the courtroom.”