LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) - The Los Angeles Police Department is bullying and harassing employees of a security company that it contracts with, a new lawsuit alleges.
Abet Security Services sued Los Angeles, Detective Benjamin Jones and Officer Eric Rose on Oct. 21 in federal court under California's Private Attorney General Act. It also alleges whistleblower retaliation.
Abet has provided private security guard services for the LAPD for about six years, but the city has told private parties to cancel their contracts, the suit says, costing Abet millions.
"City’s employees have severely bullied and harassed Abet’s employees," the suit says. "This misconduct includes repeated, unwarranted, and disproportionate hostility for Abet’s employees who followed proper protocol contrary to City’s employees’ ad hoc wishes."
Alleged examples include retaliation for reporting unlawful conduct by a city employee, aggression by a city employee in a parking garage over whether an Abet employee posted there was parked legally and sham investigations of bullying and harassment complaints.
"The misconduct has injured Abet and its employees by having entire guarding assignments removed, specific Abet employees banned from guarding posts, reduced morale among Abet employees including some who have quit, and drastically reduced goodwill," the suit says.