PLACENTIA
The police officers association has filed a lawsuit against the city alleging that local officials are attempting to hire an officer from another agency before promoting one of their own employees, a violation of state labor laws.
City officials denied the claim, saying they were unable to find a qualified Placentia police officer to fill the vacant position for a Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) officer.
“What we wanted was to hire someone from the inside,” Police Chief Daryll Thomann said. “That hasn’t happened, but we would still like to see it happen.”
Gregory Petersen, the attorney for the officers association, said a Placentia police officer who meets the criteria had expressed interest in the position but was not hired.
Thomann said one Placentia officer applied for the position, but that officer was not qualified for the job.
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