$1.5M to be paid to police chief who displayed Nazi insignia

KENT, Wash. (AP) – A suburban Seattle city will pay more than $1.5 million to settle a dispute with a former assistant police chief who was disciplined for posting a Nazi rank insignia on his office door and joking about the Holocaust.

The Seattle Times reports former Kent Assistant Police Chief Derek Kammerzell was initially disciplined with two weeks off without pay after the 2020 incident.

Outraged residents prompted Mayor Dana Ralph to demand Kammerzell’s resignation and put him on paid leave.

The city’s attempt to essentially discipline Kammerzell a second time led to a dispute that the city said Friday was resolved by it paying Kammerzell $1,520,000 to resign.