Oregon Public Broadcasting

A Vancouver police officer has reached a $1.65 million settlement in a race discrimination case against the city he worked for.   Pete Springer reports.

The settlement is believed to be the largest ever for a discrimination case in the Northwest. 

Documents filed in federal court show an eight year pattern of retaliation and discrimination against Vancouver police officer Navin Sharma, who was born in India.

Sharma’s attorneys say his case was just one instance of prevalent racism and retaliation at the police department that needs to be addressed from the top down. 

Attorney Scott Blankenship says they agreed to settle out of court because the city agreed to a number of actions to restore Officer Sharma’s reputation.

Scott Blankenship: “I think a lot of it had to do not just with the dollars but there were certain things here that we were able to get for Officer Sharma that a jury just couldn’t give him.  A jury couldn’t write him a letter to the criminal justice training center.”

An attorney representing Vancouver says the settlement does not mean city officials are admitting fault, but it was cheaper than going to court.   

An insurance company will pay most of the settlement assuming it’s approved by the city council on Monday.