By Mike StaleyPublished: May 16, 2025 at 5:50 PM EDT|Updated: May 16, 2025 at 6:10 PM EDT

AUGUSTA COUNTY, Va. (WHSV) - Dennis Reynolds, a former deputy with the Augusta County Sheriff’s Office, filed a federal lawsuit against Sheriff Donald Smith, alleging multiple workplace violations.

The 109-page document filed in the Western District of Virginia federal court details accounts of retaliation and harassment aimed at Reynolds from Smith’s position of power. Everything stated in the lawsuit is considered alleged until it is proven in a court of law.

The preliminary statement accuses Smith of the following:

• Violating Reynolds’ Fourteenth Amendment liberty through false, stigmatizing statements
• Retaliation against Reynolds for engaging in free speech
• Discrimination against Reynolds based on disability
• Interfering with Reynolds’ rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act
  • Retaliating against Reynolds’ claims of FMLA
• Creating a hostile work environment based on sex
• Defamation through knowingly false statements

The lawsuit filing begin by describing an incident in December 2021 involving a single-vehicle car crash. The documents report that Reynolds’ brother, Robert, had crashed his car and talked to Dennis. Reynolds allegedly contacted the Emergency Communications Center and advised them not to contact Virginia State Police regarding the situation because he would handle it. However, Reynolds arrived on the scene, assessed the crash and later contacted the Virginia State Police himself.

As per proper investigation protocols, the documents detail Reynolds being asked to give up his phone. VSP had obtained a warrant to search Reynolds’ phone to make sure no wrongdoing had taken place. Reynolds told Smith about the investigation and the search warrant, but Smith advised him to delete text messages about the incident, according to the filing. After some time, Reynolds claims, Smith asked him to delete all communication recorded on his phone between them.

The lawsuit alleges Reynolds felt conflicted and disturbed by Smith’s request: If he deleted the messages, he’d risk obstructing justice; if he doesn’t delete the messages, he could face disciplinary action for disobeying an order from his superior. Reynolds also described the request as “particularly troubling” because many of the messages were “inappropriate and salacious.”

The investigation ultimately proved Reynolds had no wrongdoing but brought details to light that Reynolds had not previously reported.

The lawsuit alleges Reynolds and Smith maintained a close personal and professional relationship. However, it also said a detailed investigation reveals “a significant pattern of highly personal and often inappropriate interactions initiated primarily by Sheriff Smith.”

According to the findings, there were 1,102 text messages between Smith and Reynolds from May 2022 through July 2023. It summarizes most of the things discussed between the two parties and highlights some quotes sent from Smith to Reynolds’ phone:

• “I love you and just want you to be alright.”
• “You know I support whatever makes you happy... But I do miss you when I can’t talk to you.”
• “Come cuddle.”

The documents also describe several text messages sexually suggestive in nature, including comments about Reynolds’ genitalia size. The lawsuit said these comments created a hostile work environment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which established a Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity among other rights.

After the VSP investigation, Reynolds said he had developed a spinal tumor. At the time, he had no idea if it was cancerous or not and needed to receive immediate medical attention, according to the filing. His medical leave was approved, and the tumor was found to be benign. However, Reynolds said he was facing extreme mental stress as well because of the requests and messages sent to him from Smith.

He asked for medical leave to deal with mental health issues, which, according to the lawsuit, was within his rights as an ACSO employee. However, other deputies found him socializing with neighbors when they went by his house and reported him to his supervisor. Their reports alleged Reynolds was violating his paid time off privileges/rights. It was found later he was not violating his rights, because mental health remedies and physical health remedies take different forms.

However, Reynolds claims he was handed a termination letter and was forced to resign from ACSO. He spent a few days deciding if he was going to resign or if he was going to be terminated, according to the lawsuit, before deciding to resign. However, he was a K-9 handler, which meant his K-9 companion would be reassigned to someone else. He didn’t want to give up K-9 Rico and ultimately raised money through the community to buy a new K-9 unit for the sheriff’s office.

In the document, Reynolds said Smith filed for his immediate decertification after he resigned from ACSO. The decertification would be filed through the Virginia Criminal Justice System. Reynolds is afforded due process through the VCJS, and he was ultimately found not guilty of the allegations put forward by Smith and recertified as a law enforcement officer in Virginia. Reynolds then went job searching for careers near his home, but found out other agencies had received letters from Smith detailing falsities he had been cleared of by the VCJS, according to the lawsuit.

Reynolds said it was nearly impossible to find a career near him because Smith was taking away from his credibility. He was trying to find a job to help mitigate losses from resigning. However, he said the inability to find a job made it hard to continue medical treatment because he also lost employee benefits like health insurance.

Reynolds is suing Smith for $5.3 million in damages. WHSV reached out to Smith for comment, but he declined to comment on the active litigation.

This is a developing story. WHSV will provide updates on air and online with the latest details.

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