Cave Springs Officer Claims Race Factor In Firing

Friday, January 31, 2014

FAYETTEVILLE — A former Cave Springs police officer sued the city and police chief, claiming he was fired at least in part because of his race.

Stanley Young, who is black, filed the complaint Jan. 17 against the city and Police Chief Michael Caudill in U.S. District Court in Fayetteville.

Young was fired for unsatisfactory job performance April 13 after more than four years with the department. Young claims he was fired after telling Caudill and city officials he was contemplating bankruptcy. They said that wasn’t acceptable because he owed money to people in the community.

In the lawsuit, however, Young claims a white officer who filed for bankruptcy kept his job, as did another who showed up for work after drinking alcohol.

“The plaintiff’s race was a motivating factor in the termination in that his co-worker who also filed for bankruptcy and was white was not fired,” according to the complaint. “The plaintiff is married to a white female and believes that his interracial marriage was a factor in his termination.”

Young claims he was regularly required to work overtime without proper compensation and wants a minimum of 100 hours of overtime to be paid at a rate of time-and-a-half.

Young claims he was fired for falsification of records. He claims he was disciplined with a five-day suspension for an oversight on his part regarding calls while not on duty.

Young seeks reinstatement, if possible, and damages for lost wages and benefits, mental anguish and humiliation. He also wants punitive damages for unlawful discriminatory practices and an injunction to prohibit other acts of race and retaliation behavior. If reinstatement isn’t possible, Young wants back pay, front pay and payment for retirement.