Black LASD lieutenant alleges racism behind promotion denials

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LOS ANGELES — A black Los Angeles County sheriff’s lieutenant is suing the county, alleging she was repeatedly denied a promotion to captain because of her race.

Lt. Sonja Bracken’s lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court alleges racial discrimination, retaliation, harassment and failure to take all reasonable steps to prevent discrimination. She seeks unspecified damages.

“If the plaintiff weren’t black, she would be a captain at LASD,” the lawsuit alleges.

A LASD representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit filed Friday.

Bracken was hired in August 1995 as a civilian in Community Services at the Lakewood Sheriff’s Station and currently works in the Custody Services Division of the Century Regional Detention Center.

Bracken received ‘outstanding’ evaluations as both a sergeant and a lieutenant and she has only one written reprimand on her file from when she was a junior deputy in 2003, the suit says. .

Nonetheless, Bracken was denied a promotion to captain because she is black, according to the suit. She first applied to become a captain in December 2020, but was passed over multiple times in 2021 and continues to be passed over even as other lieutenants have been elevated to the position, the suit says.

In October 2021, Bracken was asked to work temporarily assisting a COVID-19 exemption review team and to supervise five other members of a team and be exposed to higher command for possible promotion to captain, says the pursuit.

But when Bracken reapplied for the captaincy in January this year, she was again passed over and promotions were given instead to three more lieutenants in March, the lawsuit says.

Bracken re-offered for captain in July, but those promotions were later halted to allow new Sheriff Robert Luna to make his own selections, depending on the suit.

The alleged discrimination by not promoting Bracken caused him embarrassment, humiliation, anxiety, extreme emotional distress and related symptoms, and severe financial loss, the lawsuit says.

“(Bracken) was evidently an intelligent, principled, and highly skilled employee on his way to a series of promotions, if not demotion, denial of promotion, and retaliation,” the lawsuit states.

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