NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) -- Another Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) employee has come forward with a complaint against the department. They went to the Community Review Board (CRB) that's supposed to oversee police, allegedly out of fear of retaliation if they went to law enforcement. Now, a Metro attorney suggests the way the board is handling that complaint is against the law.
"You can give it to the investigator, but you are also required by law to forward it to OPA," said Nicki Eke, an attorney with Metro's legal department.
"Not going to do it," said Jill Fitcheard, executive director with the CRB.
There were some tense moments at this week's CRB meeting. Metro's legal department instructed the board members they are required by law to turn over the new allegations from an MNPD employee to the police department's Office of Professional Accountability (OPA). However, Fitcheard essentially refused.
"Has that complaint been forwarded to the MNPD or OPA yet?" Eke asked.
"No," Fitcheard answered..
"Okay, you are required to do that," Eke replied.
"Yeah, I'm going to refuse to do that, and what I am going to do is tell you that I'm refusing that because the person that came forward made it very clear that if that information was given back to the police department or to OPA, that it would disappear," Fitcheard explained.
"You cannot withhold a complaint and decide what you want to do with it as executive director. You can forward it to the investigator, but you are also required to provide it to the OPA," Eke said.
Mayor Freddie O'Connell appointed an independent investigator to look into MNPD after a 61-page whistleblower complaint was filed last month. A former Nashville lieutenant claimed police leadership helped shape a law that took away much of the oversight board's power, and gave special treatment to higher-ups when they were accused of wrongdoing.
Weeks after that complaint went public, police suggested the whistleblower leaked some of the Covenant School shooter's writings.
There is no word on the nature of the allegations in the new complaint against the MNPD, but News 2 did learn they are from a current employee of the police department.
"They fear harassment, intimidation, and retaliation," said CRB Chair Alisha Haddock.
Some CRB members agreed to not send the complaint to police and only send it to the newly-appointed investigator outside Metro.
"I think, in this case, the board is on reasonable grounds not to forward it to OPA because we have now an independent investigator," said Joe B. Brown, a retired judge and member of the CRB.
The mayor appointed former U.S. Attorney Ed Stanton to lead the independent investigation into the complaint against MNPD.