Metro sergeant fighting demotion in slur case

Keith Paul

Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2001 | 10:38 a.m.

A Metro Police sergeant demoted last month after an internal investigation ruled he made racial and gender slurs is fighting to keep his rank.

Sgt. Eric Ducharme's demotion to detective is set to become effective Jan. 20, but Thursday he filed a grievance with Metro administration seeking a hearing on his punishment, Undersheriff Richard Winget said.

Winget will hear the grievance and has 22 days from the date the grievance was filed to make a ruling.

Metro's diversity and equality board recommended Ducharme, a supervisor in the intelligence unit, be demoted after ruling he made several offensive and derogatory remarks based on race and gender to the detectives he supervised, Winget said. Ducharme is currently on administrative leave with pay.

"It was not a single incident, it was a series of racial slurs and gender slurs while on duty," Winget said.

Ducharme, a 24-year department veteran, could not be reached for comment this morning.

Ron Niemann, business manager of the Police Managers and Supervisors Association, said Ducharme's punishment was more severe than other officers accused of making offensive remarks in different cases. The union is providing Ducharme with a lawyer for the appeal process.

"This discipline is much harsher than for similar offenses by others," said Niemann, a retired Metro captain.

Not only is Ducharme being demoted, but he is losing an almost assured spot of being promoted later this year. He was ranked second on the promotion list for lieutenant. The list was not set to expire until later this year, and he most likely would have been promoted. Since he was demoted, he was removed from the list.

Niemann also pointed out the demotion is likely to cost Ducharme "six figures" in salary over the course of his career and retirement.

"Something like this pretty much ends his career as far as being promotable," he said.

Niemann did not mention names of others whom he believed received less severe punishment. But privately other Metro officers brought up the case of Lt. Greg McCurdy, who was recently promoted to captain after serving a suspension for sexual harassment and being untruthful during the internal investigation.

Earlier this year, an investigation determined and McCurdy later admitted that he made sexual comments to two women he was supervising. He was suspended for 20 hours for the sexual harassment and given another 40-hour suspension for being untruthful during the internal investigation.

Under a disciplinary guideline effective Jan. 1, any officer who is untruthful during an internal investigation faces being fired. But punishment for violating the diversity and discrimination policy is not specifically spelled out in the new guidelines.

Winget said the punishment is recommended by the department's diversity board, made up of civilian employees and officers.

He also said McCurdy's case is not a good comparison, but he mentioned the case of Sgt. Debra Gauthier. In 1997 she was demoted from lieutenant after the department's diversity and equality board ruled she had retaliated against a sergeant who filed a complaint against her.

Gauthier has claimed she's being retaliated against for filing a sex discrimination complaint against the department. She has waged several legal battles against Metro and has suits pending in federal court.

"Lt. McCurdy's (violation) was gender comments and allowing the hostile work environment, but Sgt. Ducharme's were gender and race statements that were egregious, and it was not a single incident," Winget said.

If Winget rules to uphold the demotion during the grievance hearing, Ducharme can request the matter be heard by an arbitrator, according to Metro's collective bargaining agreement with the supervisor's union.