LANSING — The former chief diversity officer at the Michigan State Police sued the agency and Col. James Grady in federal court on Tuesday, Oct. 14, alleging Grady decimated morale at the MSP by promoting officers without regard for their qualifications and “instigated and maintained a pattern of workplace harassment” that permeated the agency and adversely affected decision making.
Insp. Sarah Krebs, who was named chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer at the MSP in December 2022, alleges in the lawsuit that Grady and other top officials subjected her to retaliation and harassment when she pushed back against hiring policies she saw as unlawful, denied her access to staff and other MSP resources, moved her from her own office to a cubicle, and required her to return her state vehicle.
Krebs, who retired in September after a 25-year MSP career, further alleges that a sexual harassment complaint filed on her behalf and without her approval in late 2024 led to a retaliatory sexual harassment complaint against her and the unwelcome resurfacing of a years-old incident in which she was groped, all resulting in needless mental trauma and ridicule.
Shanon Banner, a spokeswoman for the MSP and Grady, did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Oct. 15.
The 45-page complaint from Krebs is the latest in a series of lawsuits, allegations, recriminations and scandals that have rocked the MSP in recent years. Unions representing troopers and command officers have blamed Grady and his chief deputy director, Lt. Col. Aimee Brimacombe, for low morale and some Republican lawmakers have joined the unions in expressing non-confidence in their leadership and calling for their removals. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and many Democratic lawmakers, however, have stood by Grady and defended his leadership.
Krebs, a white woman, alleges that Grady, a Black man Whitmer named to lead the MSP in September 2023, pushed hiring and promotions on the basis of race and personal friendships, without giving adequate consideration to qualifications.
Specifically, the lawsuit alleges:
Krebs alleges in the lawsuit that an unnamed male lieutenant forcibly kissed her in front of other officers after a dinner at an MSP conference in Detroit in December 2024. Krebs alleges that she felt she had resolved the issue through conversations with the officer about the inappropriateness of his actions but learned in January 2025 a lieutenant had filed a sexual harassment complaint about the incident on her behalf and an internal affairs investigation had been opened. Krebs alleges in the lawsuit that the officer who forcibly kissed her then filed a harassment complaint against her, resulting in a second investigation, and that a third investigation had been opened, also without her approval, into an incident in which she had been groped, years earlier. None of the investigations led to findings that resulted in discipline but all three contributed to her stress and trauma, the suit alleges.
The suit, which seeks unspecified damages, alleges retaliation, retaliatory harassment, a hostile work environment and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Krebs is represented by Detroit attorneys Michael Weaver and Todd Flood.
Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Former MSP chief diversity officer sues agency, alleging abuse in hiring and promotions
Reporting by Paul Egan, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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