The Lieutenant who's suing Jackson County Sheriff Steve Rand is accused of trying to extort the county.
Lt. Tommy Schuette filed a lawsuit against Rand in February, claiming the Sheriff harassed him for his hearing disability. But lawyers for Jackson County say that happened after Schuette tried to blackmail Rand with tapes of the Sheriff making racist and sexist comments.
Schuette eventually released the tapes. County lawyers say he demanded better pension benefits to keep them private. Sheriff Rand admits he made inappropriate comments about African Americans, Hispanics and women. The County claims Schuette took part in those conversations.
Schuette's lawyer, Jim Fett, calls the extortion claims ludicrous. Fett says the County and Rand are making up lies to deflect from what they've done. Sheriff Rand denies harassing Schuette for his hearing loss.
Lawyers for the County have asked a federal judge to throw out the lawsuit.
