Negron

BACKGROUND

Respondent Thomas Negron (Negron) had been employed as a deputy with the Department for eight years when he became embroiled in a contentious divorce. As a result of the divorce proceedings, Negron began experiencing stress, anxiety attacks, and other physical symptoms that caused him to miss work. Negron’s continuing anxiety issues eventually caused him to take a paid medical leave of absence, during which he was required to report to Sergeant Doris Walker, his superior at the Pitchess Detention Center (PDC). The Department subsequently determined that Negron’s anxiety problems were not work-related and relieved him of duty in November 2010. After he was relieved of duty, Negron stopped receiving a salary and was no longer required to report to work. His benefits terminated at an unspecified time after he was relieved of duty. Negron’s DUI arrest and conviction On January 26, 2011, California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer Escalera stopped Negron in San Bernardino County after observing him driving erratically at an excessive speed. Escalera ran a check on the vehicle Negron was driving and learned that it was registered to a sheriff’s deputy and that the registration…