CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Three East Bank police officers have sued the eastern Kanawha County town, alleging that they were retaliated against after criminal charges were filed against the town recorder.

In separate suits filed this week in Kanawha Circuit Court, East Bank Police Chief Jess Inclenrock and former officers James R. Carte Jr. and Steven W. Smith maintain that Town Recorder Bill Thompson, with the help of town council members, harassed members of the police department after he was charged with retaliation against an officer, disorderly conduct and obstructing a police officer in September 2008.

County prosecutors dismissed the charges against Thompson in December.

Inclenrock's wife, Christy, is also a plaintiff. A deputy Kanawha circuit clerk, she contends that she was fired from her job as East Bank municipal court clerk as part of the alleged retaliation.

Charleston attorney J.B. Akers represents all four plaintiffs.

Smith was fired in November 2008 after he acknowledged that he had used his Taser on two civilians, including Candice White, an 18-year-old woman who was pregnant at the time. Smith maintained that both people wanted to feel the effects of the shock-weapon, and that he had used a low setting on them.

White has since filed her own lawsuit against the town and Smith.

Smith's lawsuit maintains that he used the Taser in "drive stun" mode, which applies a significantly smaller shock than the highest setting. Smith told White that being "drive stunned" is comparable to a bad bee sting, and that his Taser was not fully charged when he "drive stunned" her, meaning it was not as painful, according to his lawsuit.

This happened months before White complained to city council, Smith maintains. Smith and his wife remained friendly with White throughout this period, and she only lodged a formal complaint after he refused to help her after her mother was arrested in an unrelated incident, the suit maintains.

At around the same time, Thompson was charged with allegedly interfering with the arrest of his neighbor. After the town's police officers filed charges against Thompson, the police department was placed on the agenda for the next council meeting on Sept. 11, 2008, according to Smith's suit.

At this meeting, White levied her complaint against Smith.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Three East Bank police officers have sued the eastern Kanawha County town, alleging that they were retaliated against after criminal charges were filed against the town recorder.

In separate suits filed this week in Kanawha Circuit Court, East Bank Police Chief Jess Inclenrock and former officers James R. Carte Jr. and Steven W. Smith maintain that Town Recorder Bill Thompson, with the help of town council members, harassed members of the police department after he was charged with retaliation against an officer, disorderly conduct and obstructing a police officer in September 2008.

County prosecutors dismissed the charges against Thompson in December.

Inclenrock's wife, Christy, is also a plaintiff. A deputy Kanawha circuit clerk, she contends that she was fired from her job as East Bank municipal court clerk as part of the alleged retaliation.

Charleston attorney J.B. Akers represents all four plaintiffs.

Smith was fired in November 2008 after he acknowledged that he had used his Taser on two civilians, including Candice White, an 18-year-old woman who was pregnant at the time. Smith maintained that both people wanted to feel the effects of the shock-weapon, and that he had used a low setting on them.

White has since filed her own lawsuit against the town and Smith.

Smith's lawsuit maintains that he used the Taser in "drive stun" mode, which applies a significantly smaller shock than the highest setting. Smith told White that being "drive stunned" is comparable to a bad bee sting, and that his Taser was not fully charged when he "drive stunned" her, meaning it was not as painful, according to his lawsuit.

This happened months before White complained to city council, Smith maintains. Smith and his wife remained friendly with White throughout this period, and she only lodged a formal complaint after he refused to help her after her mother was arrested in an unrelated incident, the suit maintains.

At around the same time, Thompson was charged with allegedly interfering with the arrest of his neighbor. After the town's police officers filed charges against Thompson, the police department was placed on the agenda for the next council meeting on Sept. 11, 2008, according to Smith's suit.

At this meeting, White levied her complaint against Smith.

"Members of town council, including Mr. Thompson, were extremely hostile towards the Police Department during that meeting," the suit states.

Afterwards, a general pattern of abuse and retaliation emerged, according to the lawsuits.

Council fired Christy Inclenrock in September 2008, saying that revenue from tickets was down. But the number of tickets was about the same as it had been when she was hired in 2004, and had spiked in the intervening years only because the town had benefited from a grant that allowed it to hire extra police officers, according to the suit.

In November 2008, council changed Carte's hours so that he could no longer work full time for the East Bank force by working three 12-hour days a week while keeping another job on weekends. Forced to work shifts no longer than eight hours at a time, he was reduced to part-time work for East Bank, which resulted in lower pay and reduced benefits, his suit alleges.

He resigned in August 2009, according to the lawsuit.

Citing concerns over higher insurance premiums, the town also cut the police department's K-9 unit that fall. Inclenrock, who housed and cared for the police dog, maintains that the annual difference in liability coverage was around $20, and that the unit was disbanded because it was important to him.

Jess Inclenrock also accuses town council of illegally trying to take control of the department by passing ordinances that would have put council members, instead of the mayor, in charge of the department.

Council also changed Inclenrock's hours, requiring him to work five eight-hour days instead of four ten-hour days, according to the suit.

"With pressure from town council, the mayor thereafter requested that Chief Inclenrock work as many nights as possible despite the hardship it was known this would cause him," the suit states.

The suits seek unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, and also seek an injunction to bar the town council from assuming control of the police department.

Reach Andrew Clevenger at acleven...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1723.