NE Law Enforcement Training Center Director, Counsel Facing Racial Discrimination Lawsuit

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A proposed class action has been filed against the director of the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center (NLETC) and one other individual over allegations of years-long racial discrimination. The plaintiff, an honorably discharged disabled African America veteran, claims the defendants, in numerous ways and through many extracurricular avenues, interfered with his employment with the Dundy County Sheriff’s Office at every turn, going as far as to contact other potential employers to prevent the man from having any gainful employment. From the lawsuit:

The 22-page lawsuit alleges the plaintiff, upon his hiring in August 2017 by the Dundy County Sheriff’s Office, was suspended due to the man’s ostensible failure to complete a hand gun qualification course. The plaintiff says despite his requests, NLETC refused to send any information regarding his suspension, which prompted him to drive three hours to personally pick up what he asked for. During this time, the NLETC director allegedly made a call to the Dundy County attorney and advised that the plaintiff should not be hired and that the man was a risk to the sheriff’s department, the case says. Further, the NLETC director allegedly went as far as saying he “did not believe that [the plaintiff] was a credible person in such employment as a law enforcement officer” because he had been disbarred as an attorney by Nebraska roughly six years earlier, an adverse action the plaintiff claims occurred because of his attempts to reverse foreclosures for poor and disabled individuals. The plaintiff was ultimately given the job, the case continues, alleging information concerning his disbarment was “maliciously and wantonly” leaked.

Nearly two years prior to the events described above, the NLETC director defendant was allegedly responsible for the plaintiff failing to be named Chief of Police in Newman Grove, despite approval from the city council, after the NLETC director informed the mayor of the plaintiff’s disbarment and of “potential credibility issues with prosecuting cases.” This scenario, the complaint describes, is one of numerous alleged incidents in which the defendants supposedly went out of their way to ensure the plaintiff was not employed, as well as to harm the man’s reputation. To this claim, the lawsuit says the defendants “contacted every employer known to them that [the plaintiff] sought employment with and interfered with” the man’s attempts to land a law enforcement job in any capacity.