• 24
  • January
    2012

It is not an easy, nor always rewarding, calling to be a police officer in the city of Atlanta. The hours can often be difficult and the work dangerous and thankless. But still, there are those that choose to accept the sacrifice in the service of our city. But not every applicant that desires to be a police officer is necessarily deemed to be a suitable candidate.

This week, a federal appeals court will hear arguments in an employment discrimination case brought by an applicant who was refused an opportunity despite passing all the tests he was given, all that is with the exception of the blood test. The applicant was denied a position on the police force because he is HIV positive.

We first shared new about this story with you last fall, but now the applicant will have a chance to have his case heard by the appeals court. A lower court judge had sided with the City of Atlanta in its refusal to consider this applicant. The judge said that the applicant had failed to demonstrate that he would not pose a direct threat to the health and safety of others. The applicant had formerly been a criminal investigator with the icy of Los Angeles. He has known he was HIV positive since 1997, but indicated that it had never hindered his ability to work.

Source: KCAUTV Channel 9 News, "HIV-infected man fights to become Atlanta officer," Greg Bluestein, Jan. 24, 2012