Joseph Hogue, the current interim police chief in St. Helens, has filed a whistleblower lawsuit against Mayor Jennifer Massey, alleging that she blocked his promotion to the permanent position. Hogue claims this obstruction is due to his belief that the former police chief, Brian Greenway, colluded with Massey to influence the last mayoral election.

According to The Oregonian, Hogue further alleges that Massey attempted to discredit him by reaching out to several officers under his command, asking if they had any “opinions” about him.

Hogue has been serving as the acting police chief for the past five and a half months. He was officially appointed as interim chief last week, as the City Council announced a 10-day application period for other internal candidates to apply for the permanent position.

In his lawsuit, Hogue is seeking at least half a million dollars in damages for what he describes as “intentional interference” with his promotion.

Greenway resigned in January after an external investigation revealed he had sent pornographic images to subordinates, incited opposition to his superiors, manipulated an officer’s salary by falsely claiming he had passed an agility test he never took, threatened a handcuffed suspect, berated officers, and mocked the sheriff.

Hogue, who was a lieutenant under Greenway, had previously filed complaints with the city, accusing Greenway of fostering a “hostile work environment,” withholding mutual aid from neighboring police agencies, endangering officers, and conspiring with Massey, then a mayoral candidate, to reduce police patrol coverage in an effort to sway the election and help Massey defeat incumbent Mayor Rick Scholl.