Sherry Hines awarded $350,000 after lawsuit

A former Village of Hempstead police lieutenant has been awarded $350,000 by a federal jury that found she was passed over for promotions and demoted for filing discrimination complaints against the police department.

Sherry Hines, 54, said Friday that Hempstead Village police destroyed her 23-year career with the department by refusing to promote her to deputy chief or assistant chief. She retired in 2009 after she was removed as commander of the department's domestic violence unit and assigned to a desk job.

"I feel vindicated," Hines said. "But it doesn't bring me any joy, and that's because . . . I loved being a police officer."

In a statement, Hempstead Village attorney Debra Urbano-DiSalvo said she is "reviewing the matter and evaluating any and all legal options available."

"We have a dedicated police force here in our village," she said, "and this case should not reflect the hard work or reputation of our professional police force."

According to the village, as of July, the 121-member police department was 50 percent nonwhite. The percentage of women was not immediately available.

The federal jury rendered its verdict Thursday, after a four-day trial in federal court in Central Islip.

Rick Ostrove, Hines' Carle Place-based attorney, said the jury found that the department retaliated against Hines for filing two discrimination complaints against Hempstead Village with federal and state agencies.

In the complaints, the African-American woman alleged she suffered gender and racial discrimination. The state complaint was dismissed. The federal complaint became part of the lawsuit that was decided Thursday, Ostrove said.

The jury cleared the village of discrimination, Ostrove said.

Hines was a candidate for assistant or deputy chief, but those positions were given to "less-experienced male officers," her attorneys said in a statement. Hines also was denied the chance to be chief of police, her attorneys said.

Hines, who lives in Atlanta, said she is pursuing a doctorate in psychology. She said resuming her law enforcement career was "not an option," because it is difficult for police supervisors other than chiefs to transfer to other departments.

Hines said Hempstead Village officials did not explain why she was passed over, but she "strongly suspected" it was because of her complaints. "By that time, I knew that that would be the end of my career," she said.