San Diego Settles Racial Discrimination and Wrongful Termination Lawsuit

Former Officer Jeffrey Stewart filed a lawsuit against the city of San Diego, California in 2018 after he was wrongfully terminated from his position. The lawsuit also was filed after he found out that some of his supervisors had recommended he be terminated in 2017. Stewart, who worked in his department for 19 years, stated that his department created a hostile environment when it came to race.

Stewart used his voice to speak up about racial discrimination after a fellow African American police officer had been discriminated against, which led to Stewart being stripped of his “police powers” following the situation. Stewart alleges in the lawsuit that he was harassed, retaliated against, and discriminated against for his race. He also believes he was discriminated against for notifying his employers of a work-related disability, and for speaking both internally and publicly about the mistreatment of himself and others in the department.

The City of San Diego settled the lawsuit with Stewart with five checks that totaled $50,000 for the wrongful termination case. The San Diego Police Department has allegedly implemented changes in order to help decrease the amount of discrimination both for officers in the department, and the people officers interact with on a daily basis in the city.

If you feel that you have been wrongfully terminated, or discriminated against and would like to know your rights as an employee in the state of California, please contact the attorneys at the California Employment Legal Group today for a free consultation with an experienced employment lawyer.