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Aycock denied Hardy’s request to be reinstated to the police force after winning his lawsuit against the city in 2009. She also set the final amount of his award:
- $81,988.75 in back pay.
- $200,000 in emotional damages.
- $27,966 in front pay.
- $110,421.50 in attorney’s fees.
- $5,519.07 in costs.
The 18-page ruling was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi in Aberdeen.
Aycock wrote that Hardy had “waived the remedy of reinstatement” because of his repeated assertions of fear of retaliation, his explicit request for front pay, and his failure to include the issue of reinstatement in the pretrial order.”
Hardy’s attorney, Jim Waide, said his client has mixed feelings about the decision.
“Cliff remains very concerned about the police department and is disappointed he was not reinstated,” Waide said. “Of course he’s happy with the amount of the reward.”
City attorneys Guy Mitchell and John Hill said they weren’t surprised by the decision or the amount of the award.
“This is really what we anticipated,” Hill said.
The case is far from finished, however. The city filed an appeal in the U.S Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New Orleans, launching a process that could take years and potentially alter the case’s outcome.
Hardy had won a federal lawsuit against the city last year. He claimed he was forced from his job after publicly defending former Assistant Chief Robert Hall against what he believed to be racial discrimination.
Contact Emily Le Coz at (662) 678-1588 or emily.lecoz@djournal.com.