A Denver police detective who claims the department discriminated against him because he is Hispanic choked up in court Wednesday telling a jury he was humiliated by treatment he described as punitive and unusual.
Det. Daniel Rojas, a 30 year-veteran, said that his assignment to desk work during an investigation into his handling of an informant continued for four months after he completed a disciplinary suspension. In other, similar cases, he said, officers were sent back to their regular jobs after being disciplined.
Rojas, an undercover narcotics detective at the time, said the desk-job resulted in a loss of overtime and other income, as well as embarrassment.
“I was humiliated, it was a hard pill to swallow,” he said, his voice breaking. “Every day somebody comes up and asks ‘what are you doing here?’ ” he testified in U.S. District Court in Denver.
Rojas was one of 16 Hispanic police plaintiffs who filed suit claiming discrimination on July 16, 2008.
Judges dismissed 15 of those cases, making Rojas’ claim the only one to get to trial.
The case began in August, 2004, when an associate of a Mexican drug cartel operating in Denver contacted him through another party saying he wanted to talk.
Rojas, who had been working to convince the man to provide evidence against members of the ring, said it was Friday night, he was going home, and didn’t want to meet.
But the informant wanted to see him right away. Rojas agreed, and then violated rules by meeting him without first reporting it to a supervisor and failing to bring another officer with him, he said.
When the informant’s lawyer complained he had met with his client outside his presence, Rojas reported the meeting to superiors and then-Division Chief David Fisher launched an investigation.
Fisher ordered Rojas to desk duty while the investigation was conducted by Rojas’s superiors.
The original investigation concluded with a recommendation for a three- or five-day suspension, Rojas said. But Fisher wouldn’t agree and asked a captain in Rojas’ unit to continue looking into the matter.
The captain recommended a 15 day suspension and soon after Rojas was moved to a desk in the crimes against persons bureau.
Fisher told him that he was moved because he had departed from the truth by not informing investigators that the person who set up the meeting was related distantly to Rojas, according to Rojas lawyer, Leonard Martinez.
Former Safety Manager Al LaCabe dismissed the departure from the truth accusation, Rojas said, but suspended him for 50 days. He served 20 with the remainder to be dropped if he got into no further trouble for a year.
When he returned from suspension, he expected to go back to regular duty but was kept at a desk.
Four months later, in April, 2006, he was offered a detective’s position.
Tom McGhee: 303-954-1671, tmcghee@denverpost.com or
