By Teri Figueroa and Walker Armstrong
The San Diego Union-Tribune
CHULA VISTA, Calif. — After months of turmoil and accusations of a plot to oust her, Chula Vista’s police chief sued town and 4 councilmembers Tuesday, alleging defamation, invasion of privateness and harassment.
The authorized motion filed in San Diego Superior Court comes a number of weeks after Chief Roxana Kennedy filed claims with town — usually seen as a precursor to a lawsuit — alleging that town supervisor used an incident outdoors of labor as a pretext to reprimand Kennedy and launched a retaliatory investigation.
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The defendants are town of Chula Vista, City Manager Tiffany Allen and councilmembers Michael Inzunza, Cesar Fernandez, Carolina Chavez and Jose Preciado.
Inzunza and Preciado declined to remark Wednesday, and the remaining two council members didn’t reply to a request for remark.
In an announcement on behalf of town of Chula Vista and Allen, town mentioned it “categorically denies the allegations and will vigorously defend against them in court. The City is confident the truth will show that no wrongdoing occurred.”
The metropolis has strongly denied the allegations since they first surfaced earlier this yr and mentioned an alleged conspiracy to oust her was “entirely false.
The suit does not name Mayor John McCann, and Kennedy’s attorney said he has no reason to believe the mayor was involved in any of the alleged actions. McCann’s office declined to comment on the suit and the months-long tensions between the city and its police chief.
Kennedy, 65, has been with the department for 33 years. She has led it since 2016 and is the longest-serving police chief in the region. The lawsuit alleges a council member was “secretly vetting a younger Latino law-enforcement official in a nearby jurisdiction” to exchange her. The swimsuit doesn’t determine the council member.
The chief has been out on medical go away since late January, shortly earlier than news of tensions between the chief and town broke. Kennedy’s legal professional, Cory Briggs, mentioned Wednesday his shopper remains to be getting a paycheck, however — because the lawsuit alleges — she has been locked out of her electronic mail, personnel info and wage assertion.
“She loves the community she serves, and she is disappointed that the city’s leadership has treated her with disrespect and contempt,” Briggs mentioned Wednesday.
Kennedy filed two claims towards town in March, and Briggs mentioned Wednesday that town didn’t reply to the claims. The metropolis mentioned it didn’t vote to approve the claims and that the claims have been denied by operation of regulation.
The swimsuit alleges violations of the state’s Fair Employment and Housing Act and different legal guidelines. It alleges that ways towards Kennedy included making her job “miserable by fabricating allegations of wrongdoing” and launching a “retaliatory investigation.”
According to the swimsuit, Kennedy’s working circumstances had been “so miserable that a reasonable person would deem the environment too hostile, oppressive, and toxic to remain.”
Kennedy’s legal professional alleges an incident at a police union vacation occasion final December was used as a pretext to take motion towards her. According to Briggs, after an officer took off his shirt in a pretend striptease throughout a dance-off for a raffle prize, Kennedy put dollar payments within the officer’s pockets then took a bow — which Briggs mentioned elicited cheers.
More than 5 weeks later, the swimsuit states, town supervisor reprimanded Kennedy. The swimsuit alleges that across the identical time, town supervisor disclosed confidential details about her to an individual outdoors town.
In current weeks, a number of pastors, neighborhood members and officers have spoken in assist of Kennedy at City Council conferences, together with District Attorney Summer Stephan and former San Diego U.S. Attorney Robert Brewer.
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