Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Alleging Race Discrimination Against the City of Marion, Arkansas

Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Alleging Race Discrimination Against the
City of Marion, Arkansas

WASHINGTON, Oct. 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Justice Department today
announced that it has reached a settlement with the city of Marion, Ark.,
that, if approved by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of
Arkansas, will resolve the department's lawsuit against the city alleging race
discrimination in employment in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
of 1964, as amended. Title VII prohibits discrimination in employment on the
basis of race, sex, national origin or religion.

The department's complaint, filed in May 2009, alleges that the city
discriminated against Stacy D. Allen, an African-American and a former
part-time patrol officer in the city's police department, when it did not
appoint him as a full-time patrol officer. The complaint alleges that the
police department had a history of appointing the most senior part-time patrol
officer as a full-time officer when a full-time position became available.
However, when Allen, who was the city's only African-American patrol officer,
became the most senior part-time patrol officer and two full-time positions
opened, the city appointed two less senior white part-time patrol officers to
those positions instead of Allen. The Justice Department's complaint was
based on a charge of discrimination filed by Allen with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission.

"All Americans are guaranteed the right to know that they can pursue their
career of choice without fear of discrimination based on their race," said
Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. "Title VII
protects individuals, such as Mr. Allen, from having to suffer discrimination
in the workplace. The Justice Department will take swift action against those
employers who engage in discrimination, and we appreciate the partnership of
the EEOC in these matters."

The settlement agreement requires that the city not discriminate against on
the basis of race, or in any way adversely affect the terms and conditions of
employment of, any applicant or person employed in the city's police
department. The agreement also requires that the city provide Allen with a
monetary award of $16,000 ($2,250 in back pay and $13,750 in compensatory
damages).

The Civil Rights Division is committed to the vigorous enforcement of Title
VII. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on
its Web sites at http://www.justice.gov/crt/ and
http://www.justice.gov/crt/emp/.

SOURCE U.S. Department of Justice

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