Officials Struggling to Investigate Allegations of Discrimination Against State Troopers

Officials investigating allegations of discrimination in the Mississippi Highway Patrol are running into some roadblocks. MPB's Stephen Koranda reports.

The NAACP filed a complaint in January with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Mississippi NAACP President Derrick Johnson says it's on behalf of anonymous African-American state troopers.

“Discriminatory practices in promotion of highway patrolmen, A hostile work environment. All of which no employee should have to face.”

Department of Public Safety Commissioner Stephen Simpson appointed an independent panel to investigate the allegations, but he says they haven’t been getting anywhere.

“It’s a problem that I’m addressing head-on and proactively trying to get a handle on and trying to address. I need the people who’re making the allegations to help me investigate these claims. So far no one’s coming forward, they’re just making claims.”

Simpson told a group of lawmakers yesterday about the difficulties. Senator Alan Nunnelee shared a similar concern, saying no one alleging discrimination has been willing to testify in front of the joint Investigate State Offices committee. Nunnelee called for the committee not to meet again on the issue until someone is willing to come forward, but that motion failed. NAACP president Derrick Johnson says there’s no need for troopers to come forward with an EEOC complaint.

“The reason why we did that is to insure that highway patrolmen can carry out their duties and not be retaliated against for calling attention to obviously discriminatory practices by the Highway Patrol.”

If the EEOC report finds merit in the claim, that could clear the way for legal action.