Whistleblower claims DMC uses codes to identify race on the job

Allegations brought against head of security at Detroit Medical Center

DETROIT – Troubling allegations have been brought against the head of security at the Detroit Medical Center. The head of security is accused of using racial codes to secretly identify and talk about African-American applicants and employees.

The Detroit Medical Center is one of Detroit's jewels -- a 150-year legacy with multiple hospitals, including Children's Hospital, Receiving and Harper, which has over 12,000 employees. Many of the hospitals are considered among the country's finest.

The ugly allegations of racism in the security division come from a whistleblower who is white and has worked at the DMC for over 20 years. She asked Local 4 not to identify her in the story, but she has come forward to the attorney who filed the lawsuit in Wayne County.

"He proceeded to show me on a piece of paper what the codes were and meanings were of the codes," she said.

She's alleging that Richard McCarty uses a secret numbering code to differentiate white and black applicants and employees. Whites were secretly referred to as 03 and blacks as 04.

"He wrote the number three on a piece of paper and he turned it 90 degrees and he said, 'See that's a 'w' for white,'" she said. "And then he wrote a four, flipped it upside down and showed me how it represents a 'b' for black."

A three is rotated to resemble a "w" for white. A four is flipped over to represent a "b" for black.

You can watch the video above to see Local 4 Defender Kevin Dietz's full story.

Sign up for ClickOnDetroit Email Newsletters (click here) for more stories like this.


About the Authors:

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.