Sept. 09--While the Fresno Police Department dealt with a series of workplace discrimination lawsuits over the past decade, Clovis seemed relatively trouble-free.
But now that's changed. A Clovis police sergeant and a former officer are suing the city in separate lawsuits that both touch on discrimination.
Sgt. Javier Campos, who is Hispanic, contends white officers are treated differently than officers of color.
And former officer Audra Carter, who is white, says she fought off her sergeant's sexual advances and was fired in November 2010 after she began dating a black Clovis police officer.
Campos filed his complaint in Fresno County Superior Court in July 2011, and Carter filed hers a few months later. A jury could decide Campos' lawsuit later this year, and Carter's civil trial is scheduled for May.
Both seek unspecified damages for discrimination, retaliation, harassment and creating a hostile work environment.
Clovis City Attorney David Wolfe wouldn't talk about the allegations, but said last week he is confident the city will prevail in court.
Clovis police spokeswoman Janet Stoll-Lee said Chief Janet Davis and officers involved in the cases would not be available for interviews. The Clovis Police Officers Association won't take a position on the cases.
But a 27-year veteran of the Clovis police force who retired in December said recently that discrimination has been a long-kept secret in the department.
Former Sgt. Ed Mora said officers of color and women have tolerated insensitive remarks to stay in good standing, and administrators have rationalized that "we're not as bad as we used to be."
"Clovis police are a tight-knit group," he said. "We like to handle our problems internally."
'Code of silence'
An expert on discrimination within police ranks said it's not unusual for officers to make claims of it, but it's rare for them to go public because of a long-standing "code of silence."
Discrimination also is hard to prove, mainly because other officers would have to witness it and speak out, said Deborah A. Parsons, a professor of criminal justice and assistant dean of the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences at California State University, San Bernardino.
Speaking out could lead to retaliation or being ostracized, Parsons said. In addition, police brass are good at justifying their actions by documenting incidents in which the officers showed bad judgment, she said.
"It's a no-win situation, even if you win," said Parsons, who is a reserve officer with about 25 years of law enforcement experience. "Once an officer sues the department, you know you will get blackballed."
A review of court records shows that Campos' and Carter's cases are the only workplace discrimination suits against the Clovis Police Department in the past 10 years. The Fresno Police Department in the same period has faced seven discrimination complaints by its officers.
In June, the city of Fresno announced a settlement with deputy police chiefs Robert Nevarez and Sharon Shaffer, who alleged that Chief Jerry Dyer created a hostile work environment. Another complaint, filed by Capt. Al Maroney, is pending.
A year ago, a U.S. District Court jury found that Fresno police didn't discriminate against a black officer who filed suit after a traffic stop escalated into a full-blown investigation.
After the verdict, almost all the eight jurors said they felt there was some sort of bullying or discrimination against officer Gerald Miller, but the evidence wasn't conclusive.
A judge dismissed two other cases against FPD; the city reached a confidential settlement in the final case.
Campos decides to sue
Campos' attorney said there is a reason the Clovis Police Department seldom gets sued -- the city gives medical retirements at taxpayers' expense to officers who "don't fit the mold." In return, said Pancho Baker, the officers sign confidentiality agreements and agree not to sue the city.
Campos was offered a settlement, but declined it, Baker said. "He is a decorated officer with outstanding performance evaluations in his file. All he wants to do is to be a cop. But they want to get rid of him because he's not a part of the good-old boy group."
Campos, 41, became a Clovis police officer in February 1995. Davis, a 25-year veteran of the department who became chief in January 2008, promoted him to sergeant in June 2008.
Campos says his superiors turned against him after he helped a female co-worker file a harassment complaint in fall 2009.
Baker said the harassment hit a boiling point when Campos was suspended after a confrontation at the firing range in February 2010. In court documents, Campos describes what happened:
Range master Richard Ashcraft, a white Clovis police officer, was conducting training on the proper way to clear a jammed gun. When he questioned Campos' technique, Campos yelled in Ashcraft's face: "Is there a problem?" Ashcraft just stared at Campos and walked away.
Campos told his superiors that he felt disrespected because Ashcraft was a subordinate. But Davis found Campos unfit for duty and put him on paid leave for more than a year.
Davis wrote in a court declaration that she feared Campos "had snapped."
"He was so enraged over a perceived slight," she wrote, noting that Campos had pointed his finger in Ashcraft's face and in the face of Sgt. James Boldt, who witnessed the confrontation.
"It was totally out of character and created a concern for Campos, his fellow officers and the public," the chief wrote.
Baker said the incident illustrated a double-standard because of something that happened earlier in the day at the range: Ashcraft kicked a black Clovis officer in the buttocks three times. The black officer complained to his superiors that Aschraft's actions were demoralizing, but Ashcraft never was disciplined, Baker said.
On the other hand, Campos had to undergo three fitness-for-duty exams before he was reinstated in June 2011, Baker said. Since then, Campos has been investigated twice by Internal Affairs, Baker said. He said Campos has been on paid leave since spring this year after his superiors accused him of dishonesty.
A hearing on the merits of Campos' lawsuit is scheduled for Oct. 23.
Clovis 'bullies'
Carter's attorney, Charles Manock, bluntly refers to Clovis Police Department leaders as "bullies."
In an interview last week, Carter, 28, said she wanted to be a police officer ever since second grade, when an officer talked to her class about DARE, the anti-drug program.
She set her sights on joining the Clovis force because it was considered "an elite place to work."
Carter went on ride-alongs with Clovis police officers in high school and college, where she was a star athlete at both Central High and Fresno Pacific. She studied pre-law and criminal justice, and in 2007 got her foot in the door by becoming a Clovis community service officer. A year later, she began field training as a police recruit.
Her lawsuit spells out how Carter says her career turned sour:
In 2009, her supervisor, Sgt. Jim Koch, began asking her to lunch nearly every day and dinner at his home when his wife and children were away.
Carter says she met with Koch many times because she felt pressured; she felt it would hurt her career if she didn't. She says the meetings never developed into a sexual relationship.
Koch and others started to shun her in May 2010 when she began dating fellow officer Damon Bagley, who is black. Koch began berating her performance in front of others and gave her a bad evaluation.
Lt. Matthew Basgall told her that her problems would end if she broke off her relationship with Bagley, and that she should "consult with other female officers before deciding to get pregnant." (Carter wasn't pregnant.)
She didn't end her relationship with Bagley, and she was fired in November 2010.
In May this year, the city tried to get Carter's race allegation dismissed from her lawsuit, but a judge said no.
Wiping tears from her eyes, Carter said Tuesday her lawsuit put a strain on her relationship with Bagley. She no longer dates him.
Bagley said last week, "I would rather not comment on how I feel as an employee/officer with the Clovis Police Department."
Carter, however, said she must speak out because "I didn't do anything wrong."
She was out of work for nearly two years until landing a job this month as a Fresno County probation officer.
"I wanted to be a Clovis police officer -- that was my dream," she said. "Hopefully, by standing up, it will help other female officers down the road."
The reporter can be reached at (559) 441-6434, [email protected] or @beecourts on Twitter.
Copyright 2012 - The Fresno Bee
