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LaFollette police officer fired at city council meeting for creating 'toxic workplace' pushing to get job back

The LaFollette City Council terminated Monty Miller and Brian Tiller from the police department after they said Miller created a toxic workplace.

LAFOLLETTE, Tenn. — On Friday, lawyers for Monty Miller sent paperwork to the city to preserve evidence related to his firing from the LaFollette Police Department.

"Ultimately, our goal is for him to get his job back," said L. Scott Miller, Sgt. Miller's attorney.

At its meeting on August 2, 2022, the LaFollette City Council voted 3-1 to fire Miller and Brian Tiller from the department after allegations that Miller created a toxic workplace. 

The allegations stemmed from a suspension involving LaFollette Police Captain Steve Wallen. On June 7, 2022, LPD began looking into a missing citation and placed Captain Wallen on unpaid leave while the TBI investigated. 

Wallen was re-instated, and the District Attorney General declined to bring any charges. On August 2, the LaFollette City Council voted to name Wallen the city's police chief, beginning on August 13. 

In a complaint to City Administrator Stan Foust, Sgt. Charles Duff complained that after Wallen's suspension, Miller was "laughing about the matter," and told fellow officers "one down, two to go," according to the complaint. 

Foust said he asked for an outside investigator to look into those complaints. The city hired Celeste Herbert, a Knoxville lawyer to conduct the investigation. 

In her two-and-a-half-page report, Herbert said she "conducted numerous in-person interviews, telephone interviews and Zoom interviews." She said she found "Sgt. Duff as well as other members of the LaFollette Police Department have been bullied and harassed by Sgt. Monty Miller." 

The lawyer suggested discipline against both Miller and his direct supervisor, Tiller, because Tiller "either agreed with Sgt. Miller's behavior or purposely ignored it," according to the lawyer. 

According to the meeting minutes, the LaFollette City Council received the report in the afternoon, a few hours before their meeting. Councilman Wayne Kitts made a motion to suspend the rules, and discuss the report.

Vice Mayor Soloman made a motion to terminate both Sgt. Miller and Lt. Tiller, and that motion carried 3-1. City Councilman Mark Hoskins was the only one to vote no on their termination.

"The letter was provided to the city council on the same day that the council met, with no underlying material to support the findings," said Miller. 

He said he's asked the city for the full investigation, but not yet received it. 

"When you have someone with that type of seniority and that type of experience, are you doing your due diligence prior to removing that officer?" Miller said.

Miller served the LaFollette Police Department for more than two decades.  

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