TACOMA, Wash. (CN) - Two veteran sheriff's detectives claim in court that a prosecutor destroyed their careers and violated their civil rights.
Detectives Michael Ames and Glenda Nissen sued Pierce County and its Prosecutor Mark Lindquist in separate complaints last week filed in Pierce County Court.
Both detectives have a contentious history with Lindquist, who is facing recall and whom The Seattle Times editorial board has urged to resign.
Nissen first sued Pierce County in 2011, claiming she faced retaliation after criticizing Lindquist and backing his opponent. She requested Lindquist's cellphone records, including text messages and call logs from his private number if it was used to conduct public business.
The state Supreme Court ruled in September, 2015 that work-related text messages created on a public employee's private cellphone are public records and ordered Lindquist to provide transcripts of non-exempt texts. A ruling in Nissen's 2011 complaint is expected this month.
In her new complaint Nissen, who has worked for the sheriff's department since 1997, says Lindquist "trampled" on her civil rights and misused public funds to "carry out his vindictive and retaliatory transgressions."
Lindquist retaliated against her after she supported Lindquist's opponent for prosecutor, Nissen says: "Nissen and others were not Lindquist's political 'allies'; instead they hoped to concentrate on doing their jobs well and otherwise be allowed to support a candidate of their choosing. Lindquist could not accept this, but rather insisted upon undermining their work despite the fact both had been beneficially serving Pierce County for years before he arrived," according to the complaint.
Nissen says Lindquist tried to get her thrown off the Financial Fraud and Identity Theft Task Force, and interfered with her job.
"To further his own interests, Lindquist asked Sheriff [Paul] Pastor to remove Det. Nissen from the task force. Sheriff Pastor refused, but Lindquist moved her out of the prosecutor's office anyway on or about May 5th, 2010. Defendants relocated her to the South Hill precinct, away from headquarters and from her home. Lindquist did not remove John Crawford who was also co-located in that office. On or about May 17th, 2010, the prosecutor's office blocked Nissen's prosecutor's office IP address, further limiting her ability to function on the task force. On or about May 28th, 2010, Det. Nissen received a call from her supervisor who asked her whether she was still working on the task force. Det. Nissen then learned that Lindquist had asked the Sheriff to take her off the task force. While the Sheriff did not remove her from the task force, the Sheriff did not otherwise take action to stop Lindquist from undermining her ability to function effectively on the task force, or in any other assignment. Lindquist used Sheriff's Department command staff to undermine Nissen's reputation and work," the complaint states.
Nissen became so frustrated with Lindquist's actions, including firing a longtime deputy prosecutor and refusing to prosecute a child pornography case Nissen uncovered, that she complained to The News Tribune publisher in an email and asked the newspaper to investigate Lindquist.
She says she was suspended for three days for contacting the press.
Nissen says the prosecutor's office also tried to finger her for a death threat sent to Lindquist's chief criminal deputy prosecutor, but the evidence shows Lindquist as the most likely culprit.