A former Vicksburg police officer is suing the city of Vicksburg claiming he was denied the opportunity to return to his job because he ran for alderman.

Attorneys for Troy Kimble filed the lawsuit March 9 in the U.S. District Court for Southern Mississippi, according to a copy of the lawsuit obtained by The Vicksburg Post. The suit seeks “damages in an amount to be determined by a jury and an injunction returning him to his position.”

Kimble, a former lieutenant in investigations at the Vicksburg Police Department, and a former county constable, resigned his position to run against Mike Mayfield for North Ward Alderman in 2017, losing by about 150 votes.

He applied to be reinstated in the police department at his former rank, but was denied. He is presently deputy police chief with the Clarksdale Police Department. Kimble declined to comment about the suit.

Mayfield, who is mentioned in the suit, also declined to comment.

“I think it’s unfortunate that he sued,” Mayor George Flaggs Jr. said. “He mentioned some statements that I made in his complaint, and I look forward to be able to share my thoughts. I wish we can resolve this some kind of way. I look forward to court to try and resolve it.”

According to the suit, which gives one side of the argument, Kimble, while still a Vicksburg police officer, talked to Flaggs, Police Chief Walter Armstrong and one of his deputy chiefs about incidents of corruption in the city.

Kimble later talked to Flaggs about running for office, and the mayor tried to discourage him from running, indicating it would be a hardship on Kimble and his family.

Because the police department is under civil service, Kimble had to resign from the police department to run for office. When he lost the election, he reapplied for his old position and was placed on the list of eligible former officers to return to the department under the civil service rules, according to the suit.

“Because of the plaintiff’s experience, and because he had left in good standing, he should have been selected to return to the police department,” according to the suit, which added an officer who had been fired and was not in good standing when they left was reinstated.

When Kimble talked to the police chief about being rehired, the chief told him he wanted him back, “But he would have to have the approval of the mayor, who did not want the plaintiff back.” The suit does not specify if Kimble talked to Armstrong, who was not reappointed chief in July 2017, or Milton  Moore, the present chief.

When Kimble asked Flaggs about being reinstated, he was told he was not allowed to return “because of animosity toward him from Alderman Mayfield,” who Kimble ran against.

“He (Flaggs) also informed the plaintiff that his not being allowed to return was ‘political,’” and Flaggs offered Kimble a job as supervisor of the city’s community service program, which was a drop in pay, the suit claims. The suit also claims another reason Kimble was not reinstated was because he told Flaggs he might run for mayor in the future.

The suit claims Kimble suffered loss of income, benefits, mental anxiety and expenses for having to travel to Clarksdale for work.