Former Commerce City Cop Awarded $300,000
By Brian Maass
COMMERCE CITY, Colo. (CBS4) - A former Commerce City police officer who claimed the city penalized him for his military service while he served as a patrol officer has settled his claims against the city for a $300,000 payout.
Officer Derek Richter filed a federal lawsuit against Commerce City in August 2015 saying the police department refused to allow him to test and advance to a higher police rank due to his time away from work serving as a Captain in the Army National Guard.
"A veteran returning to the workforce should be treated like they never left," said Richter's attorney, Matt Crotty. He said a confidentiality agreement prevented him from commenting on the settlement, which was signed May 31 and obtained by CBS4.
Michelle Halstead, a spokesperson for Commerce City, told CBS4 the $300,000 was paid by the city's insurance carrier. City administrators declined to discuss the settlement but released the following statement: "Commerce City is committed to delivering excellent public services and customer experiences for residents and businesses alike. While it's inappropriate to comment on a personnel matter, the city values its employees and their continued commitment to achieve this mission."
In the agreement obtained by CBS4, Commerce City strongly denied liability or wrongdoing and said the settlement "is not to be construed, in any way as an admission of liability but is only a settlement done for economic reasons."
Richter resigned from the Commerce City police department May 31 as part of the agreement. He had been with Commerce City since 2008.
According to Richter's lawsuit, when he was mobilized for military duty, "a promotional opportunity opened within the police department, but the police department refused to let Mr. Richter compete for that promotion upon his return to work."
The lawsuit also claimed that a supervisory officer belittled Richter when he returned from active military duty. According to the lawsuit, a Commerce City sergeant said to Richter:
"Hey, what's up part time cop. You're here long enough to be a part time cop."
Richter's attorney told CBS4, "It's unfortunate. Most employers do the right thing by their military reserve employees. But those that don't follow a similar fact pattern where they discriminate and deny it."
CBS4 Investigator Brian Maass has been with the station more than 30 years uncovering waste, fraud and corruption. Follow him on Twitter @Briancbs4.
