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BENNINGTON â Former state Rep. Kiah Morris said Tuesday that a change in leadership at the town managerâs office and Bennington Police Department are necessary to bring about systemic change in town â among her first public remarks after her family settled with the town over a discrimination-related BPD complaint.
Morris, her husband and their son filed a complaint with the Vermont Human Rights Commission in 2019, alleging that Bennington police failed to adequately investigate racially motivated harassment against their family because of their race and color. Morris, who is African American, mentioned the harassment when she announced her resignation as a Bennington state representative in 2018.
BENNINGTON, Vt. (AP) A two-year investigation into a Vermont police department has found that officers failed to adequately investigate alleged threats against former state legislator Kiah Morris due to its racism and prejudice.
BENNINGTON, Vt. (AP) A two-year investigation into a Vermont police department has found that officers failed to adequately investigate alleged threats against former state legislator Kiah Morris due to its racism and prejudice. In a 54-page report, the Vermont Human Rights Commission found that the Bennington Police Department endangered the safety of Morris, a […]
Investigation concludes Bennington police endangered former Rep. Kiah Morris
Associated Press
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BENNINGTON (AP) A two-year investigation into a Vermont police department has found that officers failed to adequately investigate alleged threats against former state legislator Kiah Morris due to its racism and prejudice.
In a 54-page report, the Vermont Human Rights Commission found that the Bennington Police Department endangered the safety of Morris, a Black woman, by withholding critical information about a white supremacist who had been targeting her on social media.
Morris, who since moved from Bennington, issued her first public comments about the Human Rights Commission investigation Tuesday,
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BENNINGTON â The Select Board has unanimously approved a settlement agreement concerning a complaint to the Human Rights Commission from former state Rep. Kiah Morris, her husband, James Lawton, and their son.
The settlement, which requires the town to pay the family $137,000 and issue a public apology, was in relation to Morrisâ complaints that Bennington Police did not adequately investigate online and other racially motivated harassment prior to her decision to leave the Legislature amid a campaign for re-election in 2018.
The family has since sold their home on Morgan Street and moved to the Burlington area.