Morales

I. INTRODUCTION

In January 2011, a private citizen discovered a cell phone secreted in her vehicle. Her local police agency, the Glendale Police Department (Glendale), traced the phone to Benjamin Morales (Morales), a probation officer employed by the Los Angeles County Probation Department (the Department). As a consequence of having been contacted by Glendale, Morales reported to his Department superiors that he had been acting as a private investigator in violation of his employment. In 2012 and 2013, the Department disciplined Morales in ways he challenged, both in administrative proceedings and by the complaint which is the subject of this appeal. With respect to the superior court action, Morales appeals the trial court’s sustaining without leave to amend demurrers filed by the Department and by its director and certain other Department officials. We affirm in part and reverse in part the ensuing judgment and return the case to the trial court for further proceedings.

II. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BAKGROUND1

Morales had been a probation officer employed by the Department for 13 years by January 2011. In that capacity he was a sworn peace officer and within the category of…