Deputy files discrimination suit

9/13/2008

A Wood County sheriff s deputy yesterday filed a discrimination lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Toledo, claiming that he was denied a promotion because of his race.

Deputy James Kimble sued Sheriff Mark Wasylyshyn and the three Wood County commissioners, Jim Carter, Tim Brown, and Alvin Perkins.

The lawsuit, which was assigned to Judge Jack Zouhary, claimed that Deputy Kimble was not promoted to sergeant because he is black and despite claims that he was the most qualified.

According to the lawsuit, Deputy Kimble has been employed as a deputy sheriff since 1989 and has worked full time on the department s road patrol since 1996.

The lawsuit claimed that of the 115 employees in the sheriff s department, the deputy is one of two black employees and that there are no black command officers.

Deputy Kimble applied for the rank of sergeant in the department s litter enforcement division, a position that was filled with another employee.

The lawsuit asks that the sheriff be required to promote Deputy Kimble to sergeant with a retroactive start date of Nov. 3, 2006.

As part of the lawsuit, Deputy Kimble included a finding by the Ohio Civil Rights Commission that said the sheriff s articulated reason for denying [Deputy Kimble] for promotion was pretext for discrimination based on his race.