A lawsuit challenging the dismissal of Lexington’s former police chief and three officers will now be heard in a Saline County court.

Judge Joshua Taylor agreed to the request made by Troy Sims and three co-plaintiffs that their lawsuit against the City of Lexington be transferred from Lafayette County. The four filed suit in April, alleging that their dismissals stemmed from complaints they had made to city officials about misconduct, and thus violated Missouri’s public employee whistleblower statutes. Dates of the incidents plaintiffs say they reported were not included in the initial lawsuit.

Sims had been placed on leave by the Lexington City Council in August 2024 and fired after a public hearing held the following month. Following Sims’ termination, officers Fred Alkire and Martha Alkire were placed on leave in late September, then terminated in October. A third officer, Jeffrey Youger-Rash, was also terminated in September. The four accuse city officials of denying them their procedural and substantive rights to economic compensation under state statute.

The next hearing date is pending.