Inglewood Officer’s Bias Suit Fails Again

A federal judge has dismissed for the second time in two years a lawsuit filed by an Inglewood police lieutenant who charged that he was denied promotion to captain because he is Latino.

U.S. District Judge A. Andrew Hauk said Monday that Lt. David Garza Jr. did not offer enough evidence to prove that the Police Department acted unjustly in denying him promotion five times since 1973.

In April, 1988, Hauk had dismissed the claim as “poppycock,” but the Court of Appeals later ordered the judge to reconsider the lawsuit.

Garza’s attorney, Laurence B. Labovitz, called the ruling “an absolute travesty” Tuesday and said he will appeal it and demand another judge.

Garza, a 29-year police veteran who is the department’s highest-ranking Latino, had asked the court to order his promotion to captain and to award him back pay and benefits due the higher rank. He said he had been unhappy for several years with his lack of promotion but decided to take action in June, 1987, when another lieutenant was promoted to acting captain in the department’s Special Enforcement Bureau.

Garza, who supervises the personnel and training division, said the department has been making an effort to recruit Latino patrol officers but that they face difficulty in winning promotions.

“I think my lawsuit brought the problem to the fore,” Garza said. “It may not help me, but maybe (it will help) others in the future.”