Nov 10, 2009 6:17 am US/Eastern
Hempstead Asst Police Chief Alleges Discrimination
Willie Dixon, A 30-Year Department Veteran, Claims He Was Benched Because He's Black
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Hempstead Assistant Police Chief Willie Dixon told CBS 2 he was benched because of his race, but the town said he's simply the subject of an investigation.
CBS
A high-ranking Long Island police officer who has been on the force for three decades says he's been benched because he's black.
Willie Dixon says he made history as the first black assistant chief in the history of the Hempstead Village police department, but now feels as if he's living in a bygone era: the alleged object of racial discrimination.
"Never in this history of this department has any administrator been put through what I have been put through," he said. "There is no doubt in my mind that it is based upon my ethnicity, the color of my skin."
Dixon and his attorney Eric Sanders are preparing to file a federal lawsuit, contending harassment first began after a hangman's noose was found in the police locker room in 2007. When Dixon pressed for U.S. attorneys to investigate, he claims there was retaliation.
"April 2, 2009 Chief Joseph Wing issued an order stating to me that I have no authority to order anyone to do anything on the Hempstead police department," Dixon said.
Dixon makes $180,000 a year, he said, to do nothing--but push papers. But Hempstead's Mayor, Wayne Hall, said Dixon is not a victim, but rather the object of an investigation to determine if he violated the department's bereavement policy or illegally ordered the removal of a barking dog from his apartment complex.
"I'm African-American. The board is made up of predominantly African-Americans, Hispanics – we have a multiracial board, and we will not stand by and let someone be discriminated against," he said.
Hall said it's not bias, but more like a clash of personalities. Dixon contended it is much more than that.
"I am a high-priced figurehead, who is basically twiddling his thumbs, and shuffling papers. I feel it is an utter disgrace to the Hempstead residents," Dixon said.
Dixon said his 29 years of service now seem meaningless, but Hall said if Dixon is cleared in the internal investigation, the chief will return Dixon to full duty.
A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office said their investigation of the noose incident remains open.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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