Topeka’s city government and Police Chief Bryan Wheeles filed a motion for summary judgment Friday seeking the dismissal without trial of a gender discrimination suit filed last January by three female Topeka police administrators. The motion includes explanations of Wheeles’ reasoning behind key decisions in which he chose to promote men instead of the women who filed the suit, Major Jana Harden and Capts. Colleen Stuart and Jennifer Cross. In each case, the document says, Wheeles picked the best person for the job. “The Plaintiffs have been promoted by males and over males for the entirety of their careers,” the motion said. “COT (the City of Topeka) and Chief Wheeles had legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons for the promotional decisions and Plaintiffs were not otherwise similarly situated in all material respects to those promoted.” The motion includes a 60-page document outlining the arguments of Wheeles and the city as well as more than 400 pages of attachments, including statements from Wheeles; Stuart; Harden; Cross; Topeka police administrators Jamey Haltom, Steven Purney and Jerry Monasmith; former Topeka city manager Brent Trout; former Topeka human resources director Jacque Russell; and former Topeka Police Chief and interim city manager Bill Cochran. What does the lawsuit allege? Attorneys representing Stuart, Harden and Cross filed a three-count federal civil suit in January 2023 in U.S. District Court against Wheeles and the city. The three remain with the Topeka department. The suit alleges the city “treats female officers differently than male officers to the detriment of those female officers and the department.” It contends the city passed Stuart, Harden and Cross over for promotion because they are female. Both sides are asking for a jury trial, which is expected to last about 10 days. The location hasn’t been set. Wheeles and the city ask that the trial be held in Topeka, while Stuart, Harden and Cross ask that it be held in Kansas City, Kansas. Stuart, Harden and Cross are asking for more than $7 million in damages between the three of them, plus whatever amount a jury may decide to award for punitive damages they are seeking. They’re also seeking payment for attorney’s fees, which a pretrial order said totaled $518,155 as of last month. Have any of the three officers been promoted since the suit was filed? When Stuart, Harden and Cross first filed the lawsuit, Harden and Stuart were Topeka police captains and Cross was a lieutenant. The city effective April 1 promoted Harden to major and Cross to the captain’s position being vacated by Harden. Stuart, Harden and Cross consider those to be “sham promotions,” made only because they sued the city, the pretrial order said.
Source: CJonline
