Is the U.S. Department of Justice Racist?

Joshua Nesbitt joined the Department of Justice in 1992. As is common at any job, after several years of service, Nesbitt applied for a promotion in 2010. Unfortunately, Nesbitt did not receive a promotion; another attorney with the Department with less experience and poorer application requirements did. So what is unusual about this scenario? Nesbitt is claiming that he was passed over for the promotion because he is an African American employee, while the man who did get the job is Caucasian.

A federal jury in Washington D.C. was to hear the case next week. They would have deliberated and decided whether race was a factor in Nesbitt’s promotion denial. Since 2013, Nesbitt has been representing himself, but he recently obtained representation for the trial. As of Monday morning, the DOJ had settled the case. Attorneys for Nesbitt have confirmed that “an agreement in principle has been reached.”

The DOJ had argued that the attorney who was selected for the promotion had leadership and supervisory experience that Nesbitt did not have. Nesbitt argued that supervisory experience was not listed as a qualification. The DOJ attempted to have the case tossed out of court last year, however, a senior judge ruled that Nesbitt had provided enough inconsistencies within the hiring process to allow the case to go to trial.