KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Black Kansas City police sergeant claims in a lawsuit that two officers racially profiled him when they stopped his car and falsely accused him of misconduct.
Sgt. Herb Robinson, a 30-year veteran of the Kansas City Police Department, said the two officers yelled at him as they approached his unmarked police car on March 11, 2021.
He alleges in the lawsuit that officers Cole Modeer, who is white, and Marco Olivas, who is Hispanic, stopped him because of his race, The Kansas City Tar reported. They let him go after he stepped out of his car and identified himself.
Robinson, 59, who was a detective at the time he was stopped, is suing Olivas, Modeer and the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners, which oversees the department.
“If they treat one of their own this way, I’m afraid to see how they are treating minorities who are not cops,” Gerald Gray, an attorney representing Robinson, said Thursday.
The officers are also accused in the lawsuit of falsely accusing Robinson of misconduct and other violations, and urging others to do the same.
Robinson said he reported the encounter to the police department but no action was taken.
Capt. Leslie Foreman, a police spokeswoman, said the department generally does not comment on pending litigation.
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