The former lead mechanic at Island Transit is alleging in a lawsuit that Executive Director Martha Rose wrongfully fired him because of his race and age.

Everett attorney Rodney Moody represents Latroleum Lawrence in a complaint for damages filed in Island County Superior Court on Aug. 29.

The lawsuit names Island Transit and Rose personally as defendants.

It is the second lawsuit filed against the beleaguered agency this year; financial difficulties forced transit officials to lay off employees and cut routes this summer.

The estate of a woman who died in 2011 filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Island Transit in July.

The woman was injured in a paratransit bus after her wheelchair wasn’t secured and she later suffered a cardiac arrest, the lawsuit alleges.

The newest lawsuit states that Rose fired Lawrence, the only black person in the maintenance division, following a pre-termination hearing in April.

According to the complaint, Lawrence explained that, during the meeting with Rose and other representatives from Island Transit, the concerns about his performance were baseless.

The lawsuit states that Rose later testified at a Washington State Employment Security Department hearing that Lawrence raised his voice and became irate during the meeting.

Lawrence claims that he recorded the meeting on his iPhone and the recording proves that he spoke “in a calm and restrained matter.”

The lawsuit alleges that Rose fired Lawrence because of his race and age; he was replaced by someone younger who received a lower wage, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit also alleges that Rose wrote a memo about her meeting with Lawrence that included “false and defamatory information.”

In an interview Friday, Moody said he doesn’t believe it was illegal for Lawrence to secretly record the meeting.

Under state law, people are required to notify others that they are being recorded in certain situations.

Moody said there was no expectation of privacy at the pre-termination hearing because information from the meeting was disseminated outside of the room.

He said Rose disseminated information about the meeting to the Washington State Employment Security Department. She claimed that Lawrence committed misconduct, he said.

The administrative judge found there was no misconduct and granted Lawrence unemployment benefits.