Hempstead Man Claims Racial Discrimination After Rejection From Suffolk County Police Force
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A Hempstead man is planning to sue the Suffolk County Police Department saying he wasn't hired because of his race.
Vladimir Aristilde said he passed the civil service police exam for Suffolk County as well as all the medical, polygraph and physical fitness tests and signed a conditional offer of employment, WCBS 880's Mike Xirinachs reported.
But he said he was later notified without explanation that he failed the psychological exam. The single father, who is black, believes that he was rejected because of his race.
Aristilde said he's suing the department to bring attention to the lack of racial diversity on the force.
His attorney, Jade Morrison, points to statistics that show the department is 88 percent white and only 2.5 percent African-American to support the discrimination suit.
"There's disparities in what the demographics of Suffolk County entails in regards to African-Americans, Asian Americans and Hispanic Americans and the reflection of that population in the Suffolk County Police Department," she told Xirinachs.
Suffolk County Attorney Dennis Brown told Newsday the county had received the papers, but could not comment on pending litigation.