Oceanside

A jury decided Thursday that the City of Oceanside should pay a former street maintenance worker $125,000 compensation for income and pension benefits lost as a result of his firing in 1983.

After 13 years of employment with the City of Oceanside, Bill Green was fired on Sept. 8, 1983, following a series of car accidents that occurred while he was on the job. The accidents included one in which Green struck a utility pole with a city pickup truck, causing $150 damage.

Green’s attorney, however, argued that his client was fired for being a “whistle-blower” and complaining to the city manager about favoritism in his department. Attorney Dale Larabee maintained that Green was unfairly blamed for offenses that were not his fault and was dismissed because he challenged the “buddy system” in his department.

Jurors in the six-day North County Superior Court trial before Judge F.V. Lopardo agreed. Larabee had sought $130,000 plus compensation for emotional distress, but he said he was pleased with the verdict.

Glenn Prentice, Oceanside director of public services and the man who fired Green, declined to comment on the case, saying only that Green was dismissed “with just cause.” Prentice said the City Council will probably decide next week whether to appeal the ruling.