Jury Awards LAPD Detective $1.5 Million in Retaliation Case

Jamie McBride, an outspoken leader of the union that represents Los Angeles Police Department officers, won $1.5 million Monday in a lawsuit alleging that his supervisors retaliated against him.

McBride alleged that he was unfairly punished for refusing to sign a declaration prepared by a federal prosecutor in a case involving 38th Street gang members.

One of the gang members charged in the case was McBride’s confidential informant. McBride thought the declaration was inaccurate because it did not reflect his role in encouraging the informant to get close to a Mexican Mafia leader.

Jurors awarded McBride, who said he suffers from hypothyroidism brought on by stress, $1 million for pain and suffering and another $500,000 for future pain and suffering, the Los Angeles Times reports.

McBride was elected to the Los Angeles Police Protective League’s board of directors, which is a full-time job, two years ago. He lost a close race for union president last December.