The Missouri Senate has confirmed one of the state's highest-ranking black officials as public safety director despite concerns about a racial discrimination lawsuit against him.
Senators on Thursday voted 31-2 to confirm former St. Louis police Chief Daniel Isom II.
Isom was appointed by Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon shortly after a white police officer fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson.
He was appointed amid criticism about a lack of diversity in state department leaders.
Isom's confirmation was delayed over questions about a discrimination lawsuit filed against him when he was St. Louis police chief.
A federal jury in 2013 awarded $420,000 to a white sergeant who claimed a black woman was wrongly promoted over him. Isom appealed.
Nixon and Republican Senate President Pro Tem Tom Dempsey have defended him.
