A judge has ordered mediation in a lawsuit filed by a veteran Los Angeles fire battalion chief who alleges that the department retaliated against him when he spoke out about two minority probationary captains not getting the same work performance improvement opportunities as did a white colleague.
Michael Castillo’s Los Angeles Superior Court whistleblower retaliation suit seeks unspecified damages. On Monday, Judge Jerrold Abeles directed the parties to engage with a mediation volunteer panel administered by the court’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Office. The mediation is to be completed by Nov. 16.
In their previous court papers, lawyers for the City Attorney’s Office denied Castillo’s allegations, said they are barred by the statute of limitations and that any decisions made regarding him were done for “legitimate, non-discriminatory, non-pretextual reasons.”
According to Castillo’s suit, the battalion chief was hired in 1983 and was promoted to battalion chief in 2014. Four years later, then-Assistant Chief John Drake told Castillo that he was lucky because without a Latino last name he would not have been elevated to battalion chief, a remark Castillo found offensive, the suit states.
By 2022 Drake had become a chief deputy and that same year, Castillo was assigned to oversee three probationary captains, one Black, one Latino and one white, all who were struggling while on probation, the suit states.
Drake and then-Fire Chief Kristin Crowley placed the white probationary candidate on a performance improvement plan and he later passed probation, but the two minority candidates were not put on the same plan and failed their probations, the suit states.
“The department further took steps to have the performance evaluations of all three probationary captains doctored in order to support the results it wanted,” the suit alleges.
Castillo complained to another deputy chief that the LAFD was treating two minority firefighters different from a white counterpart, according to the suit, which further states that the plaintiff additionally questioned Crowley’s alleged assignment favoritism toward LAFD command officers close to her.
In alleged retaliation for speaking out on issues that concerned him, Drake issued Castillo a notice to improve his performance and another chief deputy gave the plaintiff a written reprimand, the suit states. When an undeterred Castillo continued to complain, the LAFD relieved him of duty in 2023, assigned him to work from home and ordered a psychological fitness test that the plaintiff passed, the suit filed in July 2024 states.
Despite 40 years of service, Castillo now has black marks on his record that will impair his post-retirement opportunities, according to the suit, which further alleges that the plaintiff has lost overtime opportunities as well as other privileges and benefits.
A final status conference is scheduled Jan. 6, 2027.