McNicholas & McNicholas Secures $950,000 for an LAPD Officer Whose Request for Medical Leave Led to a Graveyard Shift

Attorney Matt McNicholas of McNicholas & McNicholas LLP secured a $950,000 verdict in a discrimination and harassment lawsuit involving a Los Angeles police officer who was transferred to a graveyard shift in response to a request for medical leave.

The LAPD officer requested an extended leave of absence after recovering from a difficult pregnancy. In 2011, the officer was placed on “injury-on-duty” for a neck injury and took a medical maternity leave two years later. When she asked to be placed in the same unit upon her return to work, she was denied on the basis that she had used too much “injury on duty time.”

The officer was forced to transfer out of her unit or be demoted, causing her to lose financial earnings and employment benefits. She also suffered humiliation, embarrassment, anxiety and damages to her reputation.