A Los Angeles County jury on Wednesday awarded $5.7 million to a former Los Angeles Police Department commander in her lawsuit against the department, which claimed she was wrongfully fired over an April 2018 drinking incident.
Nicole Mellinger and her subordinate, Sgt. James Kelly was reportedly found sitting in an unmarked LAPD Dodge Charger that was stopped at a parked vehicle in the middle of Glendale Road.
Kelly was reportedly driving and appeared to be under the influence, while Mellinger also showed signs of intoxication and was said to have argued with officers at the scene.
Pictured here is former Los Angeles Police Department Commander Nicole Mellinger. (Los Angeles Police Department)
Glendale police told the Los Angeles Times that it took about 20 minutes to extricate the two men from the car.
Melinger was charged with one misdemeanor count of public intoxication. Kelly was booked on a DUI charge.
The charges were later dropped after Mellinger completed an outpatient rehabilitation program, the Times reported. Kelly later said he had no objection.
She said in the lawsuit that she was offered a two-level demotion to lieutenant, but she refused and ultimately lost her job after a disciplinary panel ruled against her.
Kelly was reportedly demoted from sergeant to sergeant and assigned to administrative duties. He no longer appears on recent department rosters, the Times reported.
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Mellinger later sued the city, saying she was held to a different standard than male colleagues who engaged in similar or more serious conduct but were not fired. She believes some of them were allowed to retire quietly, while others kept their jobs or even received promotions.
The jury sided with Mellinger after hearing testimony in which she said she knew it was wrong to have inappropriate relationships with subordinates and to be drunk in public, but that her case was unfairly handled.
Mellinger said the verdict vindicated her and restored her reputation after years of legal battles with the city.
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