Lawsuit claims police cadet fired after pressing sexual battery charges against supervisor

A lawsuit alleges a Kansas police cadet was fired after pressing sexual battery charges against her supervisor.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Kansas contends the Kansas City, Kansas, cadet delayed reporting the abuse for fear of retaliation and found that fear justified when Police Chief Terry Zeigler fired her for “exaggerated cause” following the criminal prosecution of her attacker.

The Kansas City Star reports police officer Steven Rios was sentenced in December to a year’s probation for misdemeanor battery of a young cadet whom he supervised.

The Kansas City, Kansas, police department says it disputes the allegations and declined to comment on the reason for the cadet’s departure because it was a personnel matter.  The accused officer took a plea deal and retired from the department.

Copyright © 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.