Tom Knight loses $597,593 employee lawsuit

Sarasota Sheriff Tom Knight is seeking to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit brought by a fired deputy for $597,593.

Former Sgt. Robert Graham was injured on the job and later fired for refusing to take a physical fitness test.

Graham's lawsuit claims discrimination and retaliation under the Americans With Disabilities Act and the Civil Rights Act.

Sgt. Graham injured his back lifting a 70-pound computer battery and underwent surgery to repair a herniated disc. Two years later, he re-injured his back and went through another surgical procedure.

He remained on the job and was able to “perform all of the functions of a certified law enforcement officer, with the exception of lifting more than 30 pounds.”

Graham’s doctor sent the Sheriff a letter confirming the lifting restriction for more than 30 pounds.

Officials offered to reassign Graham to a civilian position, which paid far less money than a sergeant, but he refused the offer.

Graham was fired by Knight.

Graham also claimed his privacy was invaded when a Sheriff’s captain gained access to his medical records.

County Attorney Stephen DeMarsh estimated that the county’s “total exposure” was $773,000 and recommended settling the case.

The commissioners voted unanimously to authorize the payout.

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20 ... or-597-593

Big Deal. If the guy couldn't meet the basic requirements to be a cop, he should have been fired or retired on a medical pension.

Don't see where the Sheriff did anything wrong.

Big Deal. If the guy couldn't meet the basic requirements to be a cop, he should have been fired or retired on a medical pension.

Don't see where the Sheriff did anything wrong.

Apparaently the federal government, local attorneys and the county commissioners disagree with Mr. Knight and his illustrious (losing) attorney Mr. Kurt Hoffman.

:devil:

Big Deal. If the guy couldn't meet the basic requirements to be a cop, he should have been fired or retired on a medical pension.

Don't see where the Sheriff did anything wrong.

Apparaently the federal government, local attorneys and the county commissioners disagree with Mr. Knight and his illustrious (losing) attorney Mr. Kurt Hoffman.

Learn to spell. The Federal Government has nothing to do with it. If you actually examine the case, you will see that Monge should have retired him on a medical pension, not retained him as an LEO, when he could not meet even basic standards.

Sheriff Knight did the correct thing, cleaning up mistakes left by others.

Apparaently the federal government, local attorneys and the county commissioners disagree with Mr. Knight and his illustrious (losing) attorney Mr. Kurt Hoffman.

:devil:

My brother works at SSO and he has nothing but bad things to say about Knight. I once thought about quitting BPD to go to SSO, but ain't no way now!

I have a son and two close friends who work for SSO and they all say Knight is the best thing to ever happen to SSO. They are very happy in their jobs and say things have gotten much better since he took over.

Apparaently the federal government, local attorneys and the county commissioners disagree with Mr. Knight and his illustrious (losing) attorney Mr. Kurt Hoffman.

:devil:

My brother works at SSO and he has nothing but bad things to say about Knight. I once thought about quitting BPD to go to SSO, but ain't no way now!

My neighbor is a SSO deputy with 20+ years experience and whenever I ask him how Knight is doing (reference all the newspaper articles), he just rolls his eyes to the back of his head and says Balkwill and Monge were a lot better.

I have a son and two close friends who work for SSO and they all say Knight is the best thing to ever happen to SSO. They are very happy in their jobs and say things have gotten much better since he took over.

I have a LOT of friends @ SSO and none of them have ever said anything bad about Knight. They laugh about something called an ACE award and said that the idiots that get those do some really stupid things.

I have a son and two close friends who work for SSO and they all say Knight is the best thing to ever happen to SSO. They are very happy in their jobs and say things have gotten much better since he took over.

Both of the Knight brothers have arrest records. Tom Knight was arrested for disorderly conduct and Chris Knight was arrested for domestic battery after he got caught falsifying government documents. Their history speaks for itself.

[quote=D2 grunt]

I have a son and two close friends who work for SSO and they all say Knight is the best thing to ever happen to SSO. They are very happy in their jobs and say things have gotten much better since he took over.

I have a LOT of friends @ SSO and none of them have ever said anything bad about Knight. They laugh about something called an ACE award and said that the idiots that get those do some really stupid things.[/quote:f3g54r0v]

Same here. but obviously there is some loser with an axe to grind who keeps spamming us with this garbage.