City Settles Claim Filed by Former Police Chief
An ongoing dispute between the city and its former police chief, W. Douglas Franks, has been resolved, city officials announced this week.
The city has agreed to pay Franks $87,000, plus $8,000 for attorney fees, in exchange for the former chief’s promise to waive any future medical claims against the city.
Franks, 61, served as chief from 1989 to 1996, and was officially retired by the city in August 1997 for medical reasons.
Before his retirement, Franks filed a workers’ compensation claim against the city, alleging health problems related to his job.
In 1997, a workers’ compensation doctor determined that Franks was suffering from the permanent disabilities of hypertension and hypertensive cardiovascular disease as a result of his job as police chief, according to city reports.
City officials said the agreement, approved by a state workers’ compensation judge earlier this month, was prudent since Frank’s medical claims could have been a large, ongoing expense for the city.
Steven Foster has since been named chief of the 90-officer police force.
Franks, who has reportedly left the state, could not be reached for comment.
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