A firefighter has dropped what remained of his lawsuit against the cities of Los Angeles and Riverside, in which he alleged he has been unable to find work because of the actions of his two former employers in the aftermath of an on-duty injury he suffered in 2017.
Joseph Camarillo contended in his Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit that the Los Angeles Fire Department fired him in January 2019 after accusing him of lying about his medical history while with the Riverside Fire Department. He maintained he was the victim of a backlash for asking that the LAFD reasonably accommodate him for his injury and for “generally attempting to protect and secure his rights and the rights of others.”
In March, Judge Stephen Goorvitch granted a motion by the city of Riverside for dismissal of the part of the case pertaining to that municipality. The city of Los Angeles filed a similar motion, but before it could be heard Camarillo’s attorneys filed court papers on May 9 with the case’s new judge, Tony Richardson, asking that the remainder of the case be dismissed “with prejudice,” meaning it cannot be refiled.
The court papers to not indicate if a settlement was reached or if Camarillo is not pursing the case for other reasons.
In their pleadings, lawyers for the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office maintained that Camarillo did not disclose to the LAFD that he had been hospitalized while employed with the RFD or that he suffered from numerous conditions related to his cardiovascular fitness. The LAFD fired Camarillo because he gave false and misleading information on his medical intake form, according to the City Attorney’s Office.
In his lawsuit, Camarillo maintained that he was hurt on the job while working for the RFD in May 2017 and was taken off work by his doctors. He returned to work on light duty and a deputy chief yelled at him for getting injured, according to the complaint.
Camarillo shortly thereafter resumed full duty at the prodding of the deputy chief despite the work limitations placed on him by his doctor, the suit stated. But he was hurt again on duty in August 2017, according to the suit.
Camarillo was cleared to work full duty in November 2017, but the city’s doctor did not allow him to do so until April 2018, so Camarillo applied for and obtained a firefighting job with the LAFD in May 2018 and began duties there two months later, the suit stated.
However, in late 2018, Camarillo was told by his LAFD bosses that he had to fill out another medical evaluation form even though he previously did so earlier that year, the suit states. He allegedly was also ordered to work form home and not told anything about the investigation.
After Camarillo was fired, he found out that the same RFD deputy chief with whom he clashed earlier had met with LAFD supervisors about his medical condition and his ability to work as a firefighter, according to the suit brought in January 2020.
“In addition to the termination from LAFD, plaintiff has been unable to obtain employment from other agencies,” the suit stated.
The suit alleges that the RFD intentionally interfered with Camarillo’s working relationship with the LAFD and knew that providing his medical information to the LAFD could cause him to lose his job.