LAKE COUNTY — A former Sheriff”s Office sergeant has submitted a tort claim arguing the county owes him upward of $3 million for unjustly firing him.
Attorneys representing James Beland allege the county violated the Peace Officers Bill of Rights (POBOR) and the former sergeant”s due process rights by terminating his employment without cause.
The claim, filed with the county in late October, estimates Beland could be entitled to more than $3.7 million for lost wages, lost retirement benefits, POBOR violation fines, attorney”s fees, and emotional stress and punitive damages.
The county forwarded the claim to a third-party administrator, who will respond on behalf of the county, according to County Counsel Anita Grant. The response must be issued within 45 days of the county”s receipt of the claim, Grant said.
Beland”s time with the Lake County Sheriff”s Office (LCSO) ended almost three years ago, and the claim suggests that from 2007 to 2008, he experienced “repeated harassment for complaining about favorable treatment given to (former LCSO Captain) Russell Perdock” in the wake of one of the county”s most well-known boating fatalities.
Perdock was off-duty in April 2006 when a speedboat he was driving collided with a sailboat on Clear Lake.
A passenger on the sailboat, Lynn Thornton, died as a result of the crash.
The man at the tiller of the sailboat, Bismarck Dinius, was charged with, and later acquitted of felony and misdemeanor counts of boating under the influence.
Beland”s attorneys allege the LCSO “embarked on a course of conduct to persecute and silence” their client for comments regarding the investigation into Thornton”s death.
Grant said she could not comment on the specifics of the pending matter.
Contact Jeremy Walsh at jwalsh@record-bee.com or call him at 263-5636, ext. 37.
