POWERS, Ore. (AP) — A former police chief and only officer for the small town of Powers filed a lawsuit last week alleging his 2019 termination was improper.
Robert Baker in the complaint accuses the city of whistleblower retaliation, age discrimination and defamation for steps it allegedly took leading up to his removal, The World reported. Mayor Robert Kohn, who is mentioned in the complaint, declined to comment on specific allegations but said generally they were untrue and that he was comfortable with the actions the city took before Baker’s removal. Koh says Baker was removed “for cause.”
Baker’s employment ended when the city council voted 4-2 to remove him in December following a public hearing and closed city council meetings about his employment.
In one of those meetings, the city council issued a memo listing its concerns with Baker’s work, which was later published by KMTR TV. That memo listed 17 directives asking him to make changes to the department’s social media profiles and ceasing the use of his personal vehicle and K9 for department purposes without appropriate licenses.
In the lawsuit, Baker contends that he completed all 17 steps within a day, and city officials publicly distributed the memo that he asserts was meant to remain confidential.
Baker’s attorneys are asking the court to award him up to $3.25 million in damages due to his firing.
A complaint that Baker submitted to the state Bureau of Labor and Industries in April was dismissed by state investigators because “the record does not contain substantial evidence of a causal connection between any adverse employment harm and (Baker)’s age and whistleblowing activity,” state documents show.