Vallejo, CAA former California firefighter has been awarded $2.3 million in his wrongful termination and retaliation lawsuit, filed after he was allegedly fired for complaining about breaches in procedure. The plaintiff, Todd Milan, alleged in his wrongful termination lawsuit that two of his superiors retaliated against him when he reported the breaches to officials.
According to Patch (3/23/16), Milan attended a fire at a mobile home on September 29, 2011. During the fire, Milan was required to enter the mobile home and expected that his captain would enter with him, as per requirements that firefighters work in pairs. The captain reportedly did not enter the mobile home with Milan and did not have his gloves on while at the fire.
Speaking with KTVU (3/18/16), Milan said he ran into the burning mobile home to rescue a paraplegic man trapped in his bed. Although Milan reached the man while he was alive, he was unable to pull him from the mobile home without help and had to leave because of the intensity of the heat. The man later died from his injuries, and Milan says he suffered burns on his hands, face and back. Milan was reportedly blamed for the man’s death and reprimanded for his actions.
“At all times herein mentioned, Defendant’s managerial employees knew that the statements in [the captain’s] written report and reprimand were false, were being used to cover up errors of ranking officers, and were intended to set up Plaintiff for discipline and ultimate termination,” court documents allege.
Milan alleges the fire chief told him his story about the incident should match the accounts given by other firefighters, which he took to be a threat. He also had allegedly previously been told he should not speak with the Division of Occupational Safety and Health due to a PTSD diagnosis. After Milan reported the incident to the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, his superiors reportedly retaliated against him, including not allowing him to retake a failed examination, being falsely accused of being late for work or leaving early, and being written up based on false or misleading statements.
The plaintiff filed the lawsuit in November 2012 after he was dismissed from his job. A jury agreed with Milan and awarded him $2.3 million.
The lawsuit was Milan v. City of Vellajo, case number FCS042585, in Superior Court of the State of California, County of Solano.