Independence deputy chief’s lawsuit says he was passed over for top job because of age
Independence Police Department Deputy Chief Ken Jarnagin is suing the city for alleged employment discrimination, saying he was unfairly placed on administrative leave during an investigation of the department’s overtime practices and then passed over as he sought to become the city’s chief of police.
Jarnagin, 54, says in a civil petition filed Friday in Jackson County Circuit Court that he has endured discrimination based on his age. He also alleges the city fostered a hostile work environment and later retaliated against him for filing a complaint with the Missouri Human Rights Commission.
Asked for comment on lawsuit, City Counselor Jeremy Cover said through an Independence spokesperson that the city was aware of the lawsuit but had not been served with papers as of Wednesday afternoon.
The allegations outlined in Jarnagin’s civil petition concern the time he was appointed as the acting police chief. He worked in that role until he was placed on paid administrative leave at the direction of City Manager Zach Walker in February as an investigation was being launched into how one police officer made $160,000 in overtime over the course of one year, becoming the highest-paid employee in the city.
In 2021, the officer, Kevin Nightingale, took home about $240,000 in total, including 2,800 hours in overtime to complete remodeling work in the police station and its jail plus 400 hours of vacation pay. A law firm hired by the city to investigate found no wrongdoing by any police employee, though suggested a revamp of city policies to address certain concerns, including the recording and approving of overtime hours.
Meanwhile, Jarnagin says he was the only police employee disciplined amid the investigation — over an issue he “had no involvement with,” according to his civil petition. He further claims Police Chief Adam Dustman, who was officially promoted as top cop in August after taking over as acting chief when Jarnagin was put on leave, signed off on some of the overtime slips related to the city’s investigation but faced no disciplinary action.
In his civil petition, Jarnagin also claims Walker ignored a recommendation by an outside search firm to keep Dustman off the city’s short list of candidates. And he says the Independence City Council sought to “install a younger, less qualified officer” to be the new police chief.
Under new leadership, Jarnagin alleges that Independence police command staff — all of whom are over 50 years old, with the exception of Dustman — have been subjected to harassment based on age. He points to a recent policy concerning compensation and vacation time specific to command staff as one example.
The lawsuit filed Friday seeks damages for four civil claims against the city. It alleges age discrimination, hostile work environment, illegal retaliation and violation of state whistle blower protections.
This story was originally published November 17, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
