Justice Department intervening in private Pocomoke racial discrimination lawsuit
The Justice Department has the go ahead, from a United States District Judge in Baltimore, to intervene in the racial discrimination case of Franklin Savage, Kelvin Sewell, and Lynell Green.
The three men allege that the racial discrimination started between 2012 and 2014, when the Worcester County Sheriff and the state of Maryland reportedly subjected Savage, a former Pocomoke City Police Officer, to a racially-hostile work environment while he was assigned to a joint task force operated by the sheriff’s office.
It appears the motion to intervene seeks a jury trial and court order to pursue employment policy changes in Pocomoke City, Worcester County and the State of Maryland to prevent racial discrimination in the workplace. Besides the workplace policy changes, a press release from the Justice Department states that the United States also plans to seek “relief, including monetary relief for the three charging parties as compensation for damages caused by the alleged discrimination.”
Officer Savage first spoke out about this treatment when he filed a report with the Attorney Grievance Commission on July 22nd, 2014. He claims he was repeatedly subjected to racial epithets as well as other racially-charged acts of harassment, humiliation and intimidation by his co-workers and supervisors. Officer Savage’s complaints about racial harassment allegedly resulted in a series of retaliatory actions against him by the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office and Pocomoke City, concluding with the termination of his employment. Besides the grievance report, Savage also filed an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint.
Former Pocomoke City Police Chief Kelvin Sewell and former Pocomoke City Police Lieutenant Lynell Green also filed similar complaints alleging that Pocomoke City also retaliated against the two other officers for supporting Savage in the course of his complaints. Sewell was terminated June 2015. Lynell Green resigned earlier this year.
The EEOC’s Baltimore Office investigated the charges and claims they made attempts to mediate with the plaintiffs, but they were “unsuccessful.” The EEOC then referred the charges to the Justice Department.
“Federal law protects against discrimination and retaliation in the workplace,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “In police departments, that protection is vital not only for individual officials, but also for the communities they serve. The Justice Department is firmly committed to ensuring that our nation’s state and local law enforcement agencies comply with Title VII’s promise of a workplace free from racial discrimination and retaliation.”
Title VII is a federal statute that prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin and religion.
47 ABC reached out to the defendants in this case. As of Friday morning, the City of Pocomoke is deferring comments to their attorney in Baltimore. Calls to the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office Administrative line were met with a busy signal. And we’re still waiting to hear back from the Worcester County State’s Attorney’s Office.
