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VISALIA, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A Visalia serviceman is suing the city's constabulary section aft helium says they not lone encouraged, but besides retaliated against those who spoke up against their "unlawful citation quota."
The metropolis denies each allegations, stating successful its effect to the suit that immoderate perceived punishment was "justified" and that immoderate "claims for alleviation are barred by his ain 'unclean hands.'"
Officer Donald Huard formally filed suit against the section connected June 13, claiming that "the section imposed connected its officers an unlawful citation quota...[and] retaliated against those who refused to participate."
In the complaint, Huard says helium archetypal witnessed the misconduct successful January 2024, when, during a centrifugal officers part meeting, his sergeant stated that "each serviceman successful the Traffic Unit indispensable implicit 5 enforcement stops per time and 'double-tap' (give 2 citations) per stop, for a full of 10 citations per day."
Huard claims that erstwhile helium said "he would not participate," helium was told "that citation statistic are the sole happening the section takes into consideration," and that "the section does not instrumentality into information different duties specified arsenic collision follow-ups, azygous proposals, oregon grooming curricula."
According to Huard's suit, the retaliation against him began conscionable days aboriginal erstwhile Huard and different serviceman who spoke up against the quota were told that they "were nary longer allowed to behaviour motorcycle trainings." When asked why, Huard said Martinez stated, “Why would they [the department] springiness you what you privation if you’re not giving them what they want?”
Two weeks later, Huard and his co-officer were accused of “embezzlement" for utilizing a city-issued recognition paper to wage for a 2023 lunch. However, according to tribunal records, the crushed for the recognition paper was to wage for the lunch.
By May, Huard was served with a “Notice of Intent to Discipline” successful a June 6 Skelly Hearing. During the hearing, "the section denied the beingness of a citation quota," and removed him from the postulation unit, effectual Sept. 21, for "consistently fail[ing] to execute assigned duties arsenic a Traffic Unit Officer.”
According to the tribunal records, however, Huard was qualified and "performed his responsibilities arsenic a constabulary serviceman successful an exemplary manner and capably performed each and each information of his employment agreement."
Huard says the retaliation helium experienced has not lone damaged his nonrecreational estimation and negatively affected his income and different employment benefits, but has besides affected his intelligence health.
In a 32-point July 23 defense, the metropolis denies these claims, stating that Huard "failed to endure immoderate injury, damage, nonaccomplishment oregon harm," and that "the injuries and damages, if any... were straight and proximately caused and contributed to by the actions, errors, omissions, and inactions of [Huard]."
The metropolis goes connected to accidental that the behaviour of its employees was "justified" and that "discipline was based connected tenable factors different than those complained of [by Huard]."
It besides holds that Huard's "claims for alleviation are barred by his ain 'unclean hands'"; successful different words, helium has violated a work of bully faith oregon has acted unconscionably.
While the metropolis does not specify what Huard has done to soiled his hands, they assertion that his "complaint is barred by the doctrines of estoppel." According to Cornell Law, estoppel prevents a idiosyncratic from asserting a claim that contradicts what they person said oregon done before.
However, contempt their galore arguments, the metropolis says the statute of limitations has passed, making the lawsuit moot.
