A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order blocking the termination of a Denver employee who was laid off amid an ongoing discrimination lawsuit against the city.
Jessica Calderon, a director of operations in the mayor’s Office of Social Equity & Innovation who had worked for the city for more than 20 years, was among the 169 employees the city laid off earlier this summer in an effort to overcome a $200 million budget shortfall.
Her attorneys allege that decision was part of a “pattern of retaliation” against her by her bosses with the city. They claim Calderon was passed over for a promotion in 2024 after she supported Dr. Lisa Calderon – to whom she has no relation – in her campaign against Mike Johnston for Denver mayor in 2023 and her affiliation with the latter Calderon’s Latinos United Neighbors Association, or LUNA…