Fired Minneapolis police officer sues for defamation

A former Minneapolis police officer is suing the city and Chief Brian O'Hara for defamation and wrongful termination after his separation from the department in 2022 left his reputation "in tatters," according to court documents.

Attorneys for Tyler Timberlake, who was hired away from a police department in Fairfax County, Va., say the public spectacle surrounding his firing has made it impossible for him to find work.

The attorneys also say the city violated the Minnesota Whistleblower Act and the state's Government Data Practices Act for repeatedly and publicly saying he was under investigation.

"In short, O'Hara and the (Minneapolis Police Department) told the public exactly what Timberlake was accused of, and then terminated his employment," they wrote in the lawsuit.

Timberlake was terminated in Minneapolis in July after reports surfaced that as an officer in Virginia he was accused of assaulting a Black man in 2020. A jury found him not guilty.

The episode sparked protests and criticism of O'Hara, who signed off on Timberlake's hiring even though he knew about the case.

Timberlake seeks back pay and that the termination be scrubbed from his record. He also wants the ability to be reinstated to the force and at least $250,000 in damages.

Minneapolis police referred requests for comment to the city. Spokesman Casper Hill said the city attorney's office "is reviewing the complaint."

Timberlake's attorneys say he was defamed this year in two news releases issued by the city in which O'Hara said he was ordering a full review of the Police Department's hiring processes. Those assessments, the suit says, implied that O'Hara didn't know about the Virginia incident and that it was "an error in the [department's] hiring process that led to Timberlake's hiring."

The suit also says O'Hara and the Police Department implied in statements that Timberlake tried to conceal the incident. However, Timberlake argues he was forthcoming about the case.

His attorneys say the city violated the state whistleblower act by firing him after he alerted several city officials that O'Hara's comments were defamatory.

In their argument for wrongful termination, Timberlake's attorneys say O'Hara "made a clear and definite promise" that the Virginia incident would not affect his employment in Minneapolis.

"It was reasonably foreseeable to O'Hara and the City that Timberlake would rely on that promise in resigning from his civil service protected job with the (Fairfax County) PD and accepting employment with MPD," the suit states.