Disclaimer: This story contains sexually charged allegations and situations. Read at your discretion.
Two detectives are suing the Casper Police Department’s chief regarding his alleged failure to fire another detective for sex discrimination and workplace retaliation.
Former Casper Police Department detective Shannon Daley and Keri Patrick, current detective, filed a civil lawsuit against Casper Police Department Chief Keith McPheeters on Friday in federal court.
They allege that McPheeters refused to fire a male detective who sexually harassed his co-workers, sabotaged criminal investigations, and retaliated against female coworkers when he believed they’d done him wrong.
McPheeters did not respond Monday morning to a voicemail placed with his office or a Facebook message.
The women did not name a monetary amount in their lawsuit and asked instead for damages to be determined at trial.
Sexual Comments
Daley and Patrick’s lawsuit says that their coworker, Detective Chase Nash, often would make sexual comments around Casper Police Department employees and workers from other city or county departments, such as the Department of Family Services or the Child Advocacy Program.
“Multiple male detectives remarked on Nash’s persistent comments regarding the size of his penis, his libido, and other sexual topics” during a training in Denver in 2021, the lawsuit says.
Nash could not be reached for comment Monday morning.
It was a male coworker who requested Nash be investigated for the comments, according to the suit.
Patrick was not interviewed during the internal investigation against Nash, but if she had been, the suit says she would have discussed a 2019 homicide investigation during which she was an evidence technician.
“On the scene, which still contained a deceased person, Nash made multiple inappropriate remarks to Patrick and a female Deputy Coroner,” the lawsuit complaint reads. “(Comments regarded) red-heads having the highest libidos, asking the women how much they masturbated, and the size of his penis.”
Cop Jokes
Daley, however, was interviewed during the internal investigation. She said at the time that law enforcement personnel often make off-color jokes to deal with their work stress.
She said Nash was unlike the other detectives because he didn’t know to stop making sex jokes when other departments or civilians were present.
Female employees from other departments said Nash made anti-LGBTQ comments, did not properly protect LGBTQ victims of sex crimes and one interviewee said Nash told others that “his dick is so big … his wife’s vagina couldn’t handle him.”
After the 2021 investigation, the investigating panel recommended that the department fire Nash.
The suit alleges that Chief McPheeters did not accept the panel’s recommendation and kept Nash on staff. Later, Patrick and Daley reportedly learned that Nash had filed an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint against the department, in which he alleged he was being discriminated against as a straight, white male.
Whispers And Shouts
After Nash survived being fired, he is alleged to have launched a retaliation campaign against Daley and Patrick who he believed caused the investigation against him, according to the lawsuit.
The suit says the women did not call for the 2021 investigation.
Nash reportedly complained to his superiors that Daley talked too loud. When she began whispering all the time, the suit says Nash complained that she was whispering about him. She then started talking normally but shut her office door, after which Nash is said to have accused her of doing inappropriate things in her office and acting childishly by closing her door.
The Wrong Body
In July 2021, Nash’s son was accused of sexual assault and the investigation was turned over to the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation. This also caused tension in the investigations division, the suit states.
Nash is alleged to have sabotaged investigations, interviewed a murder suspect when he wasn’t supposed to, left his body camera off when it was supposed to be on and belittled Patrick when she found the body of a missing person Aug. 30, 2021.
Nash reportedly accused Patrick of having “found the wrong body.”
The suit claims that Nash failed to help Daley work a fatal vehicular accident, though he was assigned to be the first person responding to calls during that time.
That fall, the investigations division was a “hostile” place to work, the suit says.
Through it all, McPheeters told personnel that the department could not fire Nash, the lawsuit says.
Daley said in the filing that she felt “helpless.”
‘Giglio Issue’
Because Daley also is an FBI task force officer, she was preparing a for a federal trial in January. Nash was scheduled to testify at trial since he’d elicited the suspect’s interview and confession.
The assistant U.S. attorney on the case told Daley that Nash couldn’t testify because he is a “Giglio issue,” meaning, there were problems with his credibility and character.
The lawsuit says McPheeters allegedly told the Natrona County Assistant District Attorney, however, that there were no concerns with Nash and prosecutors could proceed “without caution or concern.”
Daley filed a formal complaint against Nash on Nov. 18, 2021. Tracey Belser, human resources director for the city of Casper, then investigated Nash for sex discrimination and retaliation.
Nash was placed on paid administrative leave Jan. 17. He resigned March 24, but was reportedly on paid administrative leave until June 11, when his retirement was due to take effect.
Daley bought out her retirement in January and left the police department in July. Patrick remains in the investigations division of the Casper Police Department.
