Two black sheriff’s deputies who sued after a supervisor hung a noose in a St. Louis courthouse have won a combined $850,000 in damages.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Two black sheriff’s deputies who sued after a supervisor hung a noose in a St. Louis courthouse have won a combined $850,000 in damages. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that the verdict, which included $150,000 in actual and $700,000 in punitive damages, was returned Friday. The suit alleged that St. Louis Sheriff James Murphy was liable for a weak response when the noose, a historic symbol of lynching, was left in the basement of the downtown Civil Courts building in 2006. Murphy is white. A sheriff’s spokesman said previously that the noose was "an innocent, although ill-advised, prank" by three deputies — including a black woman — and a white man was the target of the joke. Afterward, the deputies involved received a letter of reprimand. The plaintiffs, William "Patrick" Hill and Jacques Hughes, said more should have been done. Hill, who still works for the department, said it bothered him that Murphy never apologized for the incident, instead saying he was sorry the two were offended. "I don’t think he gets it," Hill said after the trial ended. "And whether we’ll see the changes we’re promised, we’ll wait and see." Hughes, who was fired in 2008 for violating the city’s residency policy, echoed Hill’s frustration but was pleased the jury decided in their favor. "To have this brought out and exposed like this is one of the greatest things that ever could have happened, not only to the sheriff’s department, but to the city," Hughes said. Murphy’s attorney, Michael Hughes, said his client does not think the department has a racially hostile work environment, but that he is going to make changes including anti-harassment training for all employees and hiring a new human resource director. Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.
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