This is an article that we have been contemplating for sometime. When the, now former, officer initially contacted us, we weren’t completely convinced that he was being targeted. However, since that time of initial contact, we can no longer deny that possibility. We are not confirming that he was targeted, though it does now seem plausible. Instead, we will simply provide the timeline that was presented to us. It is important to note that he provided this timeline live. This means that as they were unfolding, he presented them to our platform in hopes that we would present them at the appropriate time. That time has come.
Around mid April of 2022, the contacting officer had been switched to night-shift. At this point, according to him, things went from going very well to very poorly. Withing two weeks of this switch, he made his initial contact with us. At this time he had made a complaint regarding his supervisor. In his complaint he had noted that specific officers were treated very well while others were treated poorly. He followed this up with complaints of derogatory statements that had been made specifically at his expense. At this point, WoC noted it for potential reference but made no indication of interest.
On 5-3-2022 the officer made contact with our platform. In this contact he noted that the abuse had only gotten worst. As a result, he had filed an informal complaint against the supervisor, which was discussed in a meeting. The meeting consisted of an HR representative, detention chief Bruce Henley, and himself. During this meeting, he had learned that one of the night officers, who were on the “favorites” list with the supervisor, made a claim against him. The unknown officer made sexual harassment allegations and overall discomfort around the officer.
We proceeded to follow this claim through with questions, as this is a serious accusation. He provided us Facebook conversations between him and the officer, some which were taken on the day she filed the complaint. Needless to say, we are comfortable with our belief that her claim was knowingly false. It is, at this point, that we began compiling his information as it was clear to us that he was, in fact, being targeted.
Following this meeting, the officer was placed back onto the swing shift (3-11pm.) He noted that he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was about to happen, he would be proven correct.
On 5-5-2022 WoC once again heard from the officer. This time, he had been escorted outside of the facility and terminated. He explains that no reason or explanation was given for this action. However, when we look at this timeline of events, the reason becomes apparent: retaliation. This man, who simply wished to perform his job, had not only become the victim of verbal abuse, he was terminated for reporting it. Though we hate to see this sort of thing happen, it’s far more common than one may realize. For people such as this former officer, we will happily stand with them while ensuring that deeds like this don’t go unnoticed. As it currently stands, we have not heard anything from the detention center. If we do, we will add it to this article.
