A Los Angeles police sergeant sued the city Thursday, alleging he was denied a restoration of rank because he is white.
Sgt. Jake Bushey filed the discrimination suit in Los Angeles Superior Court, seeking unspecified damages.
A spokesman for the City Attorney’s Office did not immediately return a call for comment.
The suit states that Bushey’s ex-wife filed a report against him in 2010, but does not divulge its contents. As a result of what the woman reported, Bushey was downgraded from a sergeant 2 to a sergeant 1 and suspended for 22 days, according to his court papers.
Since serving the suspension, Bushey says he has not been involved in any misconduct and has been performing the duties of a sergeant 2 without the corresponding pay.
“His performance has been exemplary,” the suit says.
The LAPD permits officers who have been downgraded in rank to petition Chief Charlie Beck for a reversion to their prior status, but Beck has repeatedly denied Bushey’s requests, most recently on Jan. 16, according to the suit.
Bushey understands the petitions are discretionary, but “he has noticed that minority officers that have made the same request have been reverted to their prior rank even though their discipline was more serious in nature and the offense occurred well after 2010,” according to the lawsuit.
Bushey believes the other officers were treated more favorably because they are members of minority groups, the suit states.
— Wire reports