BEVERLY HILLS — Although recent high-profile coverage of Beverly Hills Police Chief Sandra Spagnoli has put the focus on a number of lawsuits and complaints the city faces, officials remain supportive.
In an emailed statement, city spokesman Keith Sterling suggested recent litigation could be due to changes Spagnoli backed with city support that nonetheless didn’t sit well with employees.
In July, the city issued a release about one employee who sought $20 million in a discrimination lawsuit but received only $250,000 after a jury found statements allegedly attributed to Spagnoli "rose to the level of harassment or retaliation. The city remains committed to the police chief and her efforts to reform the department and condemns those who are undermining those efforts, as was revealed in the trial,” according to this statement.
On the same day, the city announced it settled an age-discrimination complaint from a worker in the police forensics laboratory for $300,000. In August, the city announced settlements worth $975,000 with other current and former employees and referenced a July City Council meeting at which “both the Beverly Hills Police Officers’ Association and Beverly Hills Police Management Association told the community that the Department is moving forward, morale is good and there is not a state of crisis,” according to Sterling's statement.
In October, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Feffer overturned a jury’s award of damages to a former BHPD lieutenant, finding a lack of evidence to support the verdict.
“This rarely granted motion is certainly a victory for the city and the chief,” said City Attorney Laurence Wiener in this statement. “Although the jury found there was no discrimination as to each of the plaintiffs, they still concluded there was harassment based on several alleged comments the chief made in 2016. The city disagreed with the jury’s finding these alleged statements rose to the level of harassment.”
In January, Superior Court Judge Lisa Weller dismissed a complaint from an officer who alleged her demotion was based on age and sexual orientation.
“There is no evidence the plaintiff was replaced in the position of traffic control supervisor by a significantly younger person,” Weller wrote in this statement. “The undisputed evidence shows that city of Beverly Hills restructured its traffic and parking departments and then placed sworn peace officers as supervisors of traffic control officers.”
Wiener issued a statement in response to that decision as well. “We are pleased with the ruling,” he said in the same statement. “The city of Beverly Hills believed the case was without merit and remains committed to a respectful work environment free from harassment, retaliation and discrimination.”