Cop Sues Burbank Police Department for Discrimination

by Guest Contributor Angry Asian Man, originally published at Angry Asian Man

Last week, Christopher Lee Dunn, a decorated Asian American police detective, filed a civil lawsuit against the Burbank Police Department, alleging that he was the victim of discrimination and retaliation before being unlawfully fired: Sixth Burbank officer sues department over discrimination.

Dunn, who won the Medal of Valor as a Los Angeles Police Department officer before joining the Burbank force, says that he was subjected to years of racial taunts and discouraged from joining department’s narcotics unit because he was not white. He was apparently targeted by management before eventually being run out of the department.

He isn’t the first cop with grievances against the department. In May, five Burbank police officers sued the department and seven current police officials, alleging that they tolerated an environment in which officers commonly used slurs about race, ethnicity and sexual preference directed at them, their colleagues, suspects and the public at large.

Dunn’s suit, filed separately, seeks civil penalties and compensatory damages. He specifically alleges that he was discouraged by members of an elite, “all-white” narcotics unit who said they didn’t want to work with non-whites. When Dunn was ultimately promoted, he was subjected to racist jokes and comments.

The lawsuit also alleges that Dunn was given less desirable assignments in the unit despite having more narcotics seizures than any other Burbank officer. When one of the offending colleagues was transferred, the harassment apparently got worse. More here: Sixth Minority Officer Sues Burbank Police Department.

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Wednesday Blogaround « The Gender Blender Blog on 22 Jul 2009 at 12:17 am

[...] Cop Sues Burbank Police Department for Discrimination – Last week, Asian American police detective Christopher Lee Dunn filed a lawsuit against the Burbank Police Department alleging that he was the victim of discrimination and retaliation prior to being unjustly fired. This is the sixth time that the Burbank Police Department has been sued for discrimination since May. [...]

Comments

Evan wrote:

What is it with Los Angeles and corrupt, racist cops? Whenever someone brings up LA region narcotic units, I always think of the FX network show called “The Shield”. Four white detectives causing complete mayhem in every TV episode.

There were a couple of seasons when the show’s writers added an African-American cop to the anti-gang “Strike Team”. The white members of the team (Vic, Shane et al) did their best to ostracize the non-white person addition to the Strike Team. I know the strike team members didn’t want guys like Julian (an African-American cop) to discover any corrupt activities. But I understand the message that “The Shield” writers were trying to convey: the black cops were considered outsiders to a white-only special police unit.

Granted, I am citing TV fiction here and the Dunn case is a serious, real-life problem. But I think the screen writing on “The Shield” is not far from reality when it comes to institutional racism in police departments.

The “Blue Wall of Silence” is a serious problem because the police leadership will try their hardest to stem any investigations involving corruption or racial bias.

Posted 21 Jul 2009 at 12:21 pm ¶
Ejunco wrote:

It’s sad there are men and women of color who server a racist institution like the police department, when all they want to do is protect and serve.

Posted 21 Jul 2009 at 2:03 pm ¶
Hokayshenao wrote:

This situation sounds like a very common atmosphere. If I were that officer I would have to look deep within myself and at every corner of the environment, before I knew someone was being racist.

Posted 21 Jul 2009 at 4:02 pm ¶
waxghost wrote:

Evan, it’s not just Los Angeles. I would be willing to bet that this is endemic in police departments everywhere (isn’t THAT the most obvious statement ever made?!). In fact, I think that kind of environment encourages it even more than most because of the whole macho, power-hungry thing that most cops have.

I remember listening to this kind of thing from my father and his buddies in the breakroom at the police station in the early ’80s. My father has only gotten worse since then – or maybe I’ve become more aware of how awful it is? – to the point that I don’t talk to him anymore (both for that and other reasons).

Posted 21 Jul 2009 at 9:45 pm ¶
Katie wrote:

In a sense, to me, all cops are white. By that I mean they serve as enforcers of a white supremacist power structure. I don’t condone the racism that this officer experienced, but I do see it as somewhat ironic that the harassment he experienced was also undoubtedly directed outwards with far more dire consequences for the people this department targeted.

Posted 22 Jul 2009 at 2:00 pm ¶
atlasien wrote:

I’m really uncomfortable with the comments on this thread implying that Christopher Lee Dunn is some kind of Asian Uncle Tom.

Just because many police are racist and brutal doesn’t mean we just have to accept that as a fact of life. The police are a racist institution. The military is also a racist institution. So is lower education. And higher education. So is the food service industry. And so on. Unless you want to totally abdicate from post-industrial society and live sipping nectar from flowers or something… you have to deal with racist institutions.

People of color and people in poverty suffer horrendously from violent crime. The police don’t protect them that well (the institution is designed more to protect the rich and privileged) but they are still necessary and still somewhat accountable due to the fact that their salaries are paid by taxpayers. If you got rid of our current system of police, things wouldn’t get better… we’d end up with a system where everyone would have to hire private security guards, and the gap between rich and poor would be even greater. There are plenty of historical and modern-day parallels.

I think it took a lot of courage for this man to speak out and I congratulate him for it.

Posted 22 Jul 2009 at 2:15 pm ¶
Peri wrote:

I am waiting for an investigation to open up in Southington CT. No full time officers of color, the one that did have a part position was run out, sued and won over racial discrimination. Keep in mind this is a town of almost 50,000 people. Not some small hamlet. All that to say, unfortunately, the Burbank incident is not an isolated one, nor will it be the last.

Posted 22 Jul 2009 at 2:23 pm ¶
Phil Deeze wrote:

@ Atlasien,
The only comment I can see (out of 8 currently) that is remotely calling the officer an “Asian Uncle Tom” is Katie’s comment at #5 and it’s a stretch.
The majority of these comments aren’t disparaging to the officer bringing the suit. Am I off-base here? I’d like to see what the guy/gal named asianlawyer on the Skip Gates thread has to say about this post, though.

Posted 24 Jul 2009 at 12:29 pm ¶
Katie wrote:

@atlasien –

We may simply have to agree to disagree that police are necessary and vital.

I also think that comparing the police/military to the food service industry as both being racist institutions is somewhat specious reasoning. Sure, there is racism in food service, but frankly, that industry doesn’t have the right/power to shoot me dead. I think there are unique problems that come with the fact of the police/military being racist.

Finally, I can deeply disagree with the officer’s choice to join a racist institution that targets people of color unfairly. That doesn’t mean I’m calling him a race traitor. (That is, if my comment is the one you’re talking about! If not, please ignore.)

Posted 24 Jul 2009 at 4:55 pm ¶
MoeHailstone wrote:

I commend the officer for speaking out and congratulate him for his subsequent lawsuit but makes me ask the question…What did he expect?? Whenever others hear of racial discrimination from an institution as racist and corrupt as every police dept. in the United States why are they surprised when they themselves become targets later? Is it the “oh thats just those silly negros [insert minority here lol] talking” or what is it that makes other minorities think that they would be immune?? If someone has somethin’ to say wet*&^-wise, ni**er-wise, g**k-wise, k*ke-wise or whatever trust me there is an epithet being spoken in your direction when you’re not around. Or worse they’ll feel so entitled and unthreatened they’ll say it in front of you…supreme arrogance normally spawns from an all (fill in the blank) group no matter the vocation or situation…

Hopefully thats the lesson to be learned here is that when you hear any minority party speak of sexism or racism, trust me you’re next not the exception. And even if they (white male majority) choose to accept you, you’d be the exception to the rule and would have to hear those comments meted out against others like you.

Personally I think legislature should pass laws on law enforcement that the constituency percentage is reflected in their police force. So if we’re talking of Garden Grove, California the police force should be 55-60% asian, Anaheim, California should be 55-75% hispanic, etc., etc. After all they are the equivalent of government jobs since they do have their salary paid by our tax dollar. Time for their recruiting practices to be eradicated in terms of gettin’ white boys out of the military from the south to then go police neighborhoods that they have no affinity for or affection for the local townspeople. Complete diversification would stop the racism on the inside of the police force and the outside in how they treat us out in society.

Time for some action in Washington to get that done…its not to serve and to protect as much as its become to demoralize and subjugate! N.W.A. said it best..lol “Fuck the police!!”

Thats my two phukkin’ cents

Posted 24 Jul 2009 at 5:02 pm ¶
Dan wrote:

Burbank PD has a history of paying out to discriminated cops. I know 2 personally. One is a Mexican-American officer that was called “beaner” by his watch commander. That officer now owns half of a McDonald’s franchise from his settlement money. The other officer was a female that was told to “stay home and raise a family”. She too was paid an out of court settlement. Burbank PD’s administration has been corrupt for YEARS! Finally, the FBI and Los Angeles County Sheriff are investigating this agency. When all is said and done, a new police chief will be brought in to fix the problem. The same thing happened to LAPD in the late ’40s.

Posted 02 Oct 2009 at 7:56 pm ¶