A federal lawsuit against Oktibbeha County and County Road Manager Fred Hal Baggett has settled.
The case, filed by former road department sign technician Justin Denson, accused Baggett of harassing him with racially-charged statements. Denson’s lawsuit claimed, among other things, that Baggett once said he looked like a “black savage Viking” because of his dreadlocks, and that Baggett retaliated against Denson’s harassment complaints by firing him.
Both Denson and Baggett are black.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reviewed Denson’s complaint and gave him the right to sue.
Denson, 30, worked for the road department from April 2015 to November 2017, according to his complaint. He filed the lawsuit against the county in July in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi-Northern Division.
U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate signed an order on April 8 dismissing the case with prejudice, which means the matter cannot be brought to court again.
No details of the settlement are available, and the order describes the parties as having agreed upon the “terms and conditions of a confidential settlement.”
Wingate’s order followed a March 22 settlement conference, according to a history of actions on the PACER federal court document website, though no documents related to the conference are available.
Louis H. Watson Jr., a Jackson attorney representing Denson, declined to comment on the case on Tuesday. Attorneys William Robert Allen, of Brookhaven, and Daniel J. Griffith, of Cleveland, did not respond to multiple calls for comment by press time. Allen represented Baggett and Griffith represented Oktibbeha County.
Baggett, when contacted Tuesday afternoon, said he could not comment on the case.
Board of Supervisors attorney Rob Roberson said the county, to his knowledge, has not received a debriefing on the case. However, he said any decisions to settle would have come through the Supervisors Insurance Trust — the county’s insurance company that works through the Mississippi Association of Supervisors.
Roberson also noted that any money that may have been provided through the settlement would have come from the insurance company, rather than Oktibbeha County itself.
“The board had no real say whether it was resolved or not,” Roberson said. “We would not have been asked. It would have been a business decision on behalf of the insurance company.”
Complaint details
Denson had dreadlocks and a beard, which the complaint claims were for religious reasons, while he worked for the road department. Baggett allegedly said Denson looked like a “thug” on several occasions, according to the complaint.
The complaint further alleged that, on Aug. 29, 2017, Baggett told Denson, “I can only imagine what white people think of you because you look hideous and repulsive. You look like a black savage Viking.”
Denson spoke to District 5 Supervisor Joe Williams about the harassment, according to the complaint. Baggett later suspended Denson in November, after which Denson spoke to County Administrator Emily Garrard, who told him to submit a written statement for his appeal. Denson submitted the statement and was told a few days later that his termination was final.
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
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