On September 29, 2004, the U.S. Department of Justice ("D.O.J.") filed a lawsuit under Title VII against the City of Gallup in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. The D.O.J. asked the court for injunctive and monetary relief.

The D.O.J. alleged that the defendant engaged in a pattern or practice of intentional employment discrimination against American Indians by using recruitment and hiring procedures that exclude qualified American Indians from the City's workforce in violation of Title VII. The complaint specifically alleges that the City of Gallup, including the City's Police, Fire, Solid Waste and Utilities Department, implemented discriminatory recruitment and hiring procedures on the basis of race by: (1) failing or refusing to recruit and hire American Indians on the same basis as whites and Hispanics; and (2) failing or refusing to take appropriate action to correct the present effects of the discriminatory policies and practices.

On October 27, 2004, the district court (Judge Richard L. Puglisi) entered a consent decree ordering that: (1) American Indians are not subjected to discrimination on the basis of race in recruitment or hiring for City employment in violation of Title VII; (2) the City adopts and maintains policies and procedures that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race in discrimination in employment, including recruitment and hiring; (3) individuals who complain of race discrimination in employment shall not be retaliated against because of such complaints; and (4) the City provides monetary relief and/or priority hiring with retroactive seniority to claimants who from January 1, 1997 to the date of entry of this Decree, were denied employment with the City due to the claimant's race.

The docket ends on September 27, 2007 with the district court (Judge Puglisi) granting one of defendant's attorney's motion to withdraw. We have no further information.

Hyun Jeong Yang - 10/16/2007


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