There's fresh drama in Warren, where it seems to flow like sludge oozing downhill.
The city and its flashpoint mayor "fostered a racially hostile environment," says a federal civil rights lawsuit by the suburb's former diversity coordinator. He's also suing Jere Green, who was police commissioner from 2010-17
Gregory Murray, who resigned in December 2017, claims he left under pressure after 11 months because Fouts blocked his efforts to address violations of employees' and applicants' rights, Fox 2 reports in the half-minute video below.
Murray's 81-count filing says he tried to deal with multiple civil rights issues, according to attorney Jonathan Marko of St. Clair Shores. The ex-official earlier said in a deposition for a former Warren police officer's bias lawsuit that Fouts mocked people with Tourette's syndrome during a diversity training session.
Murray described the mayor's actions were "visually offensive" to the trainer and city staff members, according to The Macomb Daily.
But Fouts said he was merely playing "devil's advocate" by asking questions during the session. "I said if you have an employee with Tourette's syndrome and they make a disparaging comment, don't you have to discipline them? It was a question," Fouts said.
"Greg said I shouldn't have asked the question. He wanted to stir things up."
