A San Diego detective was forced to resign last year after she reported her husband, a fellow officer, physically abused her during a “horrific” night of domestic violence, according to her lawsuit against the city.
Toward the end of Allyson Ford’s 17-year career, the lawsuit says the San Diego Police Department took part in a cover-up to protect her then-husband and pushed her out of her position with an “unbearably hostile” work environment.
The lawsuit details a “stunning series of retaliatory acts” taken against Ford and a work culture that allows female employees to be discriminated against and harassed.
“Put simply, (the San Diego Police Department) is a boys’ club, where women are second-class subordinates who face punitive retaliation for speaking out against systemic injustice,” a complaint filed in San Diego Superior Court says.
When Ford was 16, she joined the department as a voluntary cadet in 2000. She began her decorated career on San Diego’s police force after graduating from the department’s cadet program in 2007, according to the complaint.