N.M. Officers File Whistle-blower Lawsuit Over Firing, Harassment

Two former Los Alamos County police officers and one current officer filed a whistle-blower lawsuit Wednesday in District Court claiming they were retaliated against after reporting concerns over a fellow officer's mental health, reports the Santa Fe New Mexican .

Brian K. Schamber was sent involuntarily to a mental health facility for 10 days in 2012 after then commanders Scott Mills and Randy Foster and Detective Paige Early expressed concern that he was homicidal and suicidal, according to the lawsuit.

Schamber sued the county in 2013 after he was released and returned to duty, claiming he was wrongfully held at the state mental health hospital in Las Vegas, N.M. The county settled with him in December for $600,000 on the condition he resign from the department.

Wednesday's whistle-blower lawsuit claims that after the incident with Schamber, Foster was fired, Mills felt forced to resign, and Early, who is still with the department, has been harassed at work.