SAN DIEGO — SAN DIEGO (CBS 8/CNS) - Officer Art Scott says he was working in fear of retaliation in the San Diego police department as an officer of 20 years. He alleged racism initially based on a historical cartoon show but the jury did not find those claims true.
Sgt. Arthur Scott filed the lawsuit against the city in 2015, alleging he was the victim of a hostile work environment, harassment and failure to prevent retaliation.
Scott said that in 2011, someone posted racist pictures in a locker room that depicted President Barack Obama as an African chief with the word "Obamacare" underneath. When
Scott complained, his supervisor told him he was being "hyper sensitive," according to the lawsuit.
In 2014, Scott said he was retaliated against when he complained about a 1909 racist cartoon that was shown to officers during a training session. The cartoon depicts Frank McCarter, the city of San Diego's first black police officer, as an ape and shows Chinese men running in fear.
"The jury was left to decide whether there was retaliation in the case and the jury found that the city did not retaliate against plaintiff Arthur Scott," said attorney George Schaefer.
After Scott - the vice president of the San Diego Black Police Officers Association - complained about the cartoon, he alleges he was passed over for a promotion, pressured into taking a transfer and threatened with disciplinary action.
Officer Art Scott says he still feels like the case was a win since they will no longer use the cartoon in training.
"This isn't about money per se, but it's sad that it has to come to this, when you don't get leadership that understands that there is racism in our police department," Scott said. "There were things that were ignored."