A jury Thursday collectively awarded $14.6 million to four Los Angeles Police Department officers who said they were retaliated against for reporting problems they deemed serious, including serious staffing shortages that left police recruits with insufficient training in the use of deadly weapons.
The Los Angeles Superior Court panel found in favor of Officers Craig Burns, Alex Chan, Mark Hogan and Kristine Salazar after a multiple-day trial in the courtroom of Judge Kristin S. Escalante. In their court papers, attorneys for the city denied that the LAPD retaliated or discriminated against the officers or that they suffered damages.
Lead plaintiffs’ attorney Matthew S. McNicholas praised the jury’s decision.
“These officers bravely spoke out not just for their own rights, but for the safety of the public and their fellow officers,” McNicholas said. “In return, they were subjected to egregious retaliation simply because they reported misconduct and unsafe working conditions.”
The verdict “exposes a culture of retaliation designed to silence officers who report misconduct and it sends a powerful message that those who abuse authority will be held accountable,” according to McNicholas.
Each officer has nearly two decades of experience and strong reputations in their respective roles, according to McNicholas. Salazar and Hogan are senior firearms instructors and Burns and Chan are veteran armorers.
Beginning in 2018, the officers raised concerns regarding unsafe conditions and potential legal violations at the LAPD’s Edward M. Davis Training Facility, including serious staffing shortages that left police recruits without adequate firearms training as well as training protocols presented by a then-new supervisor that they believed would result in violations of law, the suit stated.
But the plaintiffs’ concerns were ignored and, in 2019, the department retaliated by starting Internal Affairs investigations and imposing a series of negative work actions against the officers, including demotions, removals from specialized assignments and involuntary transfers, suit stated.
The department allegedly falsely accused Salazar of participating in a “blue flu” after she took a sick day due to legitimate illness. A “blue flu” is a coordinated, short-term sickout designed to disrupt services and pressure municipal governments over labor conditions, policy changes or contract disputes.
Salazar started the litigation by suing in December 2019.