Former top official in metro Atlanta Vernon Jones is getting heat from a federal appeals court for reverse discrimination practices. The court says former employees have quote ‘shocking evidence of an overt and unabashed pattern of discrimination.”

The lawsuit claims that Jones replaced white employees with black ones to create a quote "darker administration" to reflect Dekalb county's racial makeup. The three-judge panel said evidence shows Jones was abusive to a white manager who was parks director for nine years before Jones took office in 2001.

The ruling by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday sends the case back to a federal judge.

Tags: Vernon Jones, 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, reverse discrimination