Court Upholds Dismissal Of Lafayette Officers Lawsuit

LAFAYETTE, La. (AP) — An appeals court has upheld the dismissal of a federal lawsuit filed by 15 police officers alleging corruption among city officials and the Lafayette Police Department.

Although the three-judge panel of U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals denied the city's motion for damages on the appeal, The Advocate reports the judges noted the city's case "is not so wholly without legal merit" to warrant additional sanctions beyond those already imposed.

The appellate court agreed with U.S. District Judge Richard Haik's dismissal of the suit and upheld a district-level order for the police officers who filed the suit to pay more than $115,000 to the city and police department officials named as defendants.

The officers' claims of corruption and racism were the focus of their case in a two-year court battle dismissed in August.

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Information from: The Advocate, http://theadvocate.com