Local News in Brief : Santa Ana : Fired Officer Wins Hearing on Benefits
A former Santa Ana police officer, fired in 1983 for being overly aggressive after he was involved in two shooting incidents, has won the right to a hearing on his claim for disability retirement benefits.
The ruling by the 4th District Court of Appeal gives Michael Ostlund a chance to prove that his adverse “emotional condition” is work-related.
Last year, a Superior Court judge had ruled that Ostlund, who also was suing the city in federal court, waited too long to pursue his state lawsuit. But appellate justices found that the “root cause” of delays in the case was the city’s attempt to block benefits for Ostlund.
When Ostlund was fired, the city justified its action by claiming that he was disabled.
When the state Workers Compensation Appeal Board ruled that Ostlund’s disability was related to his job, city officials announced that they had discovered new evidence regarding the officer’s fitness for employment. City officials said the new evidence showed that while the officer was not incapacitated, he was unemployable because of “personality conflicts” with supervisors. The city continued to refuse to pay disability retirement benefits.
The appeals judges compared the city’s actions to “shuffling a marked deck,” and ordered that Ostlund be given a hearing.
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