CdA, police named in lawsuit

A former Coeur d’Alene police sergeant who’s fighting his termination filed a federal lawsuit against the city and police department, alleging he worked overtime for 10 weeks without being paid.

Coby K. Langley, a 16-year veteran, lost his job last week over an issue involving polygraph tests, said his lawyer, John Filicetti, of Boise.

Filicetti declined to elaborate on the issue, but he said the idea to sue the department and the city arose during discussions regarding the polygraph tests.

In those discussions, Filicetti said, he learned Langley attended a 10-week polygraph school in Arizona in fall 2005 …

A former Coeur d’Alene police sergeant who’s fighting his termination filed a federal lawsuit against the city and police department, alleging he worked overtime for 10 weeks without being paid.

Coby K. Langley, a 16-year veteran, lost his job last week over an issue involving polygraph tests, said his lawyer, John Filicetti, of Boise.

Filicetti declined to elaborate on the issue, but he said the idea to sue the department and the city arose during discussions regarding the polygraph tests.

In those discussions, Filicetti said, he learned Langley attended a 10-week polygraph school in Arizona in fall 2005 that ran more than 48 hours a week. The sergeant said he was paid for only 40 hours a week.

“They say, ‘We want to send you to polygraph school, but we’re only going to pay you for 40 hours while you’re there,’ which is illegal,” Filicetti said.

The lawsuit asks for a judgment to be awarded based on employment records detailing the hours Langley spent working while attending the school, including travel time and time spent completing homework.

Wendy Carpenter, who was police chief when Langley attended the course, is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit, which was filed Friday in U.S. District Court.

Coeur d’Alene police spokeswoman Sgt. Christie Wood and Deputy City Attorney Warren Wilson declined to comment.

Langley joined the Coeur d’Alene Police Department in April 1992. He was promoted from patrol to special activities sergeant in 2003.

Contact Meghann M. Cuniff at (509) 459-5534 or meghannc@spokesman.com.