CINCINNATI — Saying the n-word under almost all circumstances will soon result in immediate termination for all City of Cincinnati employees.
City officials are meeting Thursday night to discuss the updated language added to the city's non-discrimination and sexual harassment policies.
The most notable policy change regards the usage of the racial slur.
"Engaging in discriminatory harassment by usage of 'n*****' (hereinafter, the "n-word") or any variation of the n-word will result in termination because it's use has no legitimate justification in the workplace," the new policy states.
The city said that the use of the slur in any situation severely undermines the confidence the public has in city employees.
According to the policy, usage of the n-word by a city employee is only permitted without termination if full usage of the slur is required by law. This can include testimony in a courtroom or reporting the usage of the slur to a supervisor.
The policy then goes on to say that if an employee is reported to have used the slur, a "fair and thorough" investigation will be done to determine if that employee did in fact use the n-word or a version of the n-word.
"The presumptive penalty is termination unless mitigating circumstances are evident," the policy states.
The policy does not define what it means by "mitigating circumstances."
The city also did not specify what variations of the n-word are prohibited.
The updated policy comes after multiple Cincinnati police officers got into some trouble for using a version of the racial slur in various situations while on the job. Disciplinary actions against these officers varied.
Officer Rose Valentino, a white officer, was fired in August after her body camera captured her using the racial slur while driving alone past Western Hills University High School on her way back to District 3.
According to the internal report, Valentino admitted to cursing at drivers who didn't move their cars. She said she used the racial slur in reference to a Black teen who flipped her off while walking down the sidewalk after school.
The internal report says Valentino claimed she had been "desensitized to racially offensive language by music and hearing people talk on the street" and "frequent exposure had allowed the slur to slip into her vernacular."
Valentino started as police officer with CPD in 2008.
Internal CPD reports show that another white female officer used the n-word multiple times while working but wasn't terminated.
Officer Kelly Drach was answering phones in the Real Time Crime Center in November 2021 when she was reported by a coworker.
That day, the center was inundated with fraudulent telemarketer calls; Drach would often engage the telemarketers in conversation to the point of escalation, according to the internal investigation.
During one call, Drach became angry and yelled "sand n*****," the report found.
During her disciplinary hearing, Drach did not deny using the slur, but attributed her behavior to "a tremendous amount of stress in her personal life," according to a summary of the hearing.
She was suspended for seven days before returning to work. According to her personnel file, Drach has not been disciplined before and has consistently been scored high during evaluations.
Two other Cincinnati police officers recently sued the city and their former boss, Chief Eliot Isaac, for employment discrimination after the disciplinary action they received after using the n-word while on the job.
The suit was filed in July by officer Dennis Barnette, who is white, and officer Donte Hill, who is black. The suit stems from two separate incidents in 2018 where both used the n-word in different circumstances.
According to court documents, in November 2018 Hill used the n-word while confronting two men who were fighting. He received discipline and counseling from supervisors along with a written reprimand for his behavior. His police powers were not suspended.
The other incident involving Barnette happened in December 2018. According to court documents, Barnette witnessed a fight between a man and a woman. When he tried to intervene, the woman struck him in the face. After he was hit, according to an internal CPD report, Officer Barnette said "n***** slapped me in the face." This incident was witnessed by multiple civilians and other officers.
Following this incident, Barnette had his police powers suspended.
After the incident with Barnette, Hill was retroactively disciplined and had his police powers suspended, despite the fact that his initial discipline was already approved by his supervisors.
The lawsuit alleges that Chief Issac was either advised of or realized on his own that the white officer received stricter disciplinary actions taken against him for using the n-word on the job than a Black officer did. According to the lawsuit the officers engaged in identical conduct.
Thursday's virtual meeting to discuss the updated language in the city's non-discrimination and sexual harassment, and employee use of discriminatory slurs will start at 6 p.m.
Click here for meeting information.
READ MORE
Black Cincinnati police officer reinstated after using racial slur, FOP president says it took too long
Community activists: Video of Cincinnati officer using racial slur while on duty is disturbing
Cincinnati police officer alleges racial attacks, discrimination, hostile work environment
Watch Live:
