LEXINGTON - A recording of a Holmes County police chief bragging about killing 13 men, and using racial slurs made headlines in July... now it has resulted in a lawsuit.

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Here's what a press release from the civil rights organization behind the suit had to say:

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"JULIAN, a civil rights legal advocacy organization, has sued officials in Lexington, Mississippi, including the City of Lexington, the Lexington Police Department, the interim chief of police and the former chief of police, in federal court to demand protection for Lexington’s largely Black population from the very police department that ostensibly exists to keep them safe but in reality has terrorized residents. The suit requests damages, following the recent firing of the Lexington police chief after an audio recording surfaced of his remarks filled with racist and homophobic epithets and in which he brags of multiple killings in the line of duty.

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JULIAN is also calling for a federal investigation of systemic, condoned racism in both the police department and in Lexington’s municipal government as a whole. Former Police Chief Sam Dobbins was fired by a 3-2 vote by the city’s Board of Aldermen after the recording was made public in July, meaning that 40% of the governing body favored keeping Dobbins in his position. The lawsuit details examples of police violence and misconduct against Black residents, and highlights a pattern and culture of racism in the police department that requires further investigation and accountability."

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So far, The Delta News has heard no response from the City of Lexington.

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