A Black Los Angeles police officer has reached a tentative settlement in his lawsuit against the city in which he alleged disparate treatment because of his race and that he was subjected to a backlash for reporting discrimination against Black candidates applying to be LAPD officers.
Officer William Faulkner’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit alleged discrimination, harassment, retaliation and failure to take all reasonable steps to prevent unlawful discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation. Faulkner’s attorneys filed court papers on Tuesday with Judge Robert B. Broadbelt notifying him of a “conditional” resolution in the case and that a request for dismissal is expected to be filed by Sept. 23. No terms were divulged.
In his lawsuit, Faulkner alleged that since May 2018 he was “subjected to discrimination and harassment because of my race and subject to retaliation for reporting discrimination against African-American applicants who sought to become police officers with the LAPD.”
The LAPD failed to prevent discrimination and harassment and instead chose to punish Faulkner for complaining, he further contended.
Howver, the City Attorney’s Office maintained in its court papers that Faulkner admitted during his deposition that he failed to interview job applicants and that the discipline he received was justified.
Faulkner was hired in December 2008 and began working in 2016 in the recruitment division of the LAPD’s Personal History Statement Unit, the suit stated. In May 2018, Sgt. David Williams, who also is Black, was named unit supervisor, according to the suit.
For the next two months, Faulkner was frequently subjected to a hostile working environment, according to the suit, which was filed in June 2021 and most recently amended on May 8. When he submitted a Black applicant’s package for approval to the next phase of the application process, Williams would reject the candidate and make comments about the applicant that included, “He said no to drugs, I … find that hard to believe,” according to the suit.
Williams did not make similar comments about candidates of other races, the suit filed in June 2021 stated. Williams’ rejection rate of Black applicants was more than 50% and far higher than all other ethnicities, the suit further alleged.
A lieutenant agreed with Faulkner that many of the Black candidates should have been given passing grades and overturned Williams’ decisions often, the suit stated.
Faulkner filled out numerous transfer requests, but the plaintiff was still working under Williams when the two had a meeting in May 2019, the suit stated. Faulkner allegedly complained that Williams treated Black applicants harsher than other applicants and said he had never heard the sergeant mention any stereotype with Latinos or members of other races, the suit stated.
“Sgt. Williams simply responded that he treated everyone fairly and didn’t know what (Faulkner) was talking about,” the suit stated.
A complaint was later issued against Faulkner for his alleged failure to telephonically interview candidates, an action he believes was retaliatory, the suit stated. In January 2021, Faulkner allegedly was suspended for 12 days, more than twice the normal penalty.
“The Board of Rights panel found me guilty even though they were unable to reach any definitive conclusions,” Faulkner says. “The Board of Rights panel even admitted on the record that they did not know why I failed to telephonically interview candidates. They acknowledged that it may have merely been a misunderstanding.”
It’s unfortunate the number of law suits of Lapd vs. Lapd that have to go before the court. Also the common theme of retaliatory conduct by superiors because an officer complained and/ or reported. This is a quasi-military organization. That doesn’t give any supervisor the green light to create a “ hostile working environment” to achieve a means to an end.. Lapd is a culture and officers will go along to get along. It’s cowardly and it’s bullying and more importantly you create division and make the attorneys rich. BOR seems to be the cure all. Until it’s not. This is nothing you. Hopefully the public reads what goes on so they can see that the job is equally as difficult if not more so on the inside as it is on the outside!