The city of Denver is poised to spend $850,000 to settle the case of a firefighter who lost his job after he was falsely accused of stealing a cookbook.
Bill Cadorna, a nearly 30-year veteran of the Fire Department, was accused of shoplifting in 2002. In reality, he was given permission by a Safeway clerk to borrow the cookbook until the one he had misplaced in the grocery store could be found.
After the criminal charges were dropped, the city refused to reinstate him to his job. City officials argued that state law says a firefighter who is over 50 and is declared eligible for disability retirement can’t be re-examined for service.
Mark Brennan, Cadorna’s attorney, said the amount the city spent battling him and his client exceeds the check that officials will cut.
The settlement will come in two chunks: $438,968 will come out of the city’s liability claims fund and the rest will be back pay.
In 2006, a jury awarded $610,000 to Cadorna, an amount upped to $1.2 million in a subsequent ruling. The $1.2 million award was set aside after U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn granted the city’s request for a new trial.
The Denver City Council will consider the proposed settlement Monday.
