Former Police Chief Denise Richardson filed a lawsuit Monday against the city of Pine Bluff, claiming she was fired because she went against Mayor Vivian Flowers in two cases involving the decertification of former police officers who had been fired by the city.
Richardson was fired in late March, but at the time, Flowers said the chief’s termination had nothing to do with her job performance but a desire to “go in a different direction with the Pine Bluff Police Department,” according to a letter from Flowers to the chief.
Richardson said that in early January, just days after Flowers took office, the mayor “began discussing with Plaintiff the upcoming decertification hearings for Officer (Julie) Hilliard and (Darrian) Trimble,” according to the lawsuit. “Mayor Flowers did not want the decertifications to move forward.”
Hilliard, according to the lawsuit, was suspended for turning in fraudulent time cards “and reporting she was on duty when she was not.” The officer appealed the suspension but lost the appeal and was later terminated.
Trimble was terminated for misconduct in the treatment of a suspect during an arrest, the lawsuit says.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
The lawsuit says that Flowers demanded that Richardson change the department’s policy on such offenses, which are outlined in the department’s handbook and based on standards set out by the state. The chief also says Flowers told her not to request any other decertifications and that the mayor asked to meet with her on the morning of March 11, “despite having knowledge that Plaintiff was scheduled to testify in the decertification hearing of Officer Trimble that same morning.”
Richardson, however, testified at the hearing, conducted by the Commission on Law Enforcement Standards and Training Board, and Trimble was stripped of his certification as a police officer, according to the lawsuit. Less than two weeks later, Richardson said Flowers informed her she had been terminated.
Richardson claims in the lawsuit that she was fired “because of her involvement and participation in the decertification proceedings” and that Flower’s action goes against the state Whistleblower Act.
Richardson also noted that Fire Chief Shauwn Howell was allowed “to retire from his position – an option not provided to Plaintiff,” states the lawsuit. “He was given over a week to leave his office – an option also not provided to Plaintiff.”
Richardson states in the lawsuit that she was making $119,000 a year and that, in losing her pay, she was forced to take retirement early “which caused additional financial damages.”
“The fact that Plaintiff was terminated has negatively impacted her service record and has tarnished her otherwise excellent reputation,” states the lawsuit. “It has also made it difficult for her to receive similar employment.” As outlined in the lawsuit, Richardson is asking for lost wages, lost future wages, court costs and attorney’s fees. The compensatory damages would be established at trial, Richardson’s lawsuit states, while the punitive damages would be the maximum allowable by law.
Richardson is being represented by Bradley Hull with the Hickey and Hull Law Partners in Fort Smith.
Reached Monday afternoon, Flowers said she could not comment on pending litigation.
Ten years ago, the Pine Bluff City Council agreed to pay former Police Chief Brenda Davis-Jones $350,000 to settle a federal lawsuit in which she claimed racial discrimination after Mayor Debe Hollingsworth, on her first day in office in 2013, fired the chief.
