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New Bedford City Council President Naomi R.A. Carney is suing the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Paul Heroux for employment discrimination, claiming that she lost her job with the agency because of her age, gender, race, and as retaliation for complaining about how she was being treated.
In a 13-count suit brought in Bristol County Superior Court, Carney, who worked for the agency for nearly 20 years — 18 of those managing inmate crews working in the community — claims that she was targeted, and that she and others lost jobs because of their age. Carney was 66 years old when her position was eliminated in February 2023, and is of Black, American Indian and Cape Verdean heritage.
The complaint filed in June by Carney’s lawyer, former Mayor Scott Lang, runs 33 pages, demands $360,000 compensation for lost wages and emotional distress, and also seeks punitive damages.
The Sheriff’s Office filed a 17-page response in late July, denying there was any discrimination, denying that the sheriff pressured her to retire, and denying that he offered her another position without an interview.
An at-large councilor now in her sixth term, Carney was hired by the Sheriff’s Office under the administration of former Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson. She declined to comment for this story.
In an emailed statement, Heroux said, “It is unfortunate that during the restructuring of the BCSO that eliminated redundant positions, Ms. Carney lost her employment with this organization.” He said: “I guaranteed her (and other people in a similar situation) interviews for any vacant positions in the BCSO. Categorically there was no discrimination … I am confident when all the facts come out, we will prevail.”
In an interview, Heroux said Carney’s position, director of the Community Works Program, was eliminated as part of a broad agency reorganization shortly after he took office in January 2023. The director of that division would manage inmate crews on assignments in the community, such as highway cleanup, painting, and removing graffiti.
The Sheriff’s Office response filed with the court admits Carney’s claim that he told her the position was not necessary “because the work could be done by a captain, or even a lieutenant.”
The Sheriff’s Office response says the position did not require 40 hours of work a week. Carney’s complaint claims she did work those hours.
Heroux said in an interview that Carney’s responsibilities were split between two people who already worked for the agency, one a woman in her 20s, another a man in his 50s.
Heroux denied any effort to target older employees, as the suit suggests in noting that of 22 positions eliminated in the reorganization, 17 were held by people over 40 years old. The Sheriff’s Office response filed with the court acknowledges those numbers are correct, but Heroux said in an interview Wednesday that of those 17, about half are still working for the agency in different jobs, and several others have retired.
The Sheriff’s Office response filed with the court acknowledges Carney’s claim that Heroux told her in a text that “I am not going to tolerate you playing the race card.” Heroux wrote that after receiving Carney’s fourth text message claiming racial discrimination, he said in an interview.
Carney’s complaint claims that she was told on Feb. 10, 2023, that her position was being eliminated and she was being placed on administrative leave for four weeks with full pay and benefits. Heroux said it was a form of severance pay, her complaint says.
Heroux said in an interview that was a way of providing severance pay, as government agencies do not normally offer it. The leave was eventually extended to six weeks at her request, he said, as a way to ease Carney’s transition to other work, providing more than the 60% of pay she would receive on unemployment benefits.
Carney’s complaint says she told Heroux on Feb. 11 that she would be willing to take a position as a correctional officer, even on the overnight shift.
The Sheriff’s Office response admits Carney’s claim that Heroux told her she would have to go through eight or nine weeks of officer training, would be working frequent overtime shifts, and would start at the bottom of the seniority list. The response denies the claim that Heroux tried to discourage her from pursuing the CO job. The response acknowledges that Heroux discussed the option of retiring, but denies that he pressured Carney to retire, as her suit claims.
In mid-February Carney interviewed for a job as a classification counselor, with top pay about $20,000 less than the $79,000 she was making as a director, her complaint says. The Sheriff’s Office denies Carney’s claim that she was offered the classification job without taking an interview, although the response admits that Heroux at one point told Carney “I don’t think I was clear about that in our conversations.”
Heroux said in an interview that the hiring process was conducted by four people, three of whom worked for the classification division. The four recommended a person for Heroux to hire, but not Carney, Heroux said. He said the person hired was already working in the division in a lower-paying position, and had been employed by the sheriff’s office since 2009.
Carney’s suit claims the classification counselor job was given to a white man younger than she with “minimal experience working directly with inmates.” The Sheriff’s Office’s response admits only that the person hired is a white man.
Classification counselors interview new inmates for information that can help jail officials make decisions about, among other questions, their housing unit assignment, and if they need medical or substance use treatment.
After March 23, the complaint says, Carney applied for six other positions, but was never called for an interview.
Email reporter Arthur Hirsch at ahirsch@newbedfordlight.org.
