Two Fort Wayne police officers sue city

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - Two Fort Wayne police officers are suing the city of Fort Wayne after saying they are victims of discrimination.

According to court documents, Robert Elmer sued the city after saying he was discriminated against because of his eczema skin condition.

In January 2011, he wasn't wearing station-issued hat because the wool material irritated his skin, according to the documents.  He was asked by his commanding officer why it wasn't on. Elmer had informed Captain Timothy Bogenschutz, the commanding officer in the court documents, of his condition and said he had a doctor's statement. Bogenschutz referred the issue to Internal Affairs.

Internal Affairs gave Elmer permission to wear a different hat, as long as it had a monogram on it. In the court documents, Elmer applied for a promotion, but negative comments in his file, which he said he wasn't aware of and should've been under their bargaining agreement with the union, prevented that.

Six days later, Boyce Ballinger sued the city after saying he was discriminated against because of his battle with anxiety and depression.

He said he has been a victim of "discrete acts" of discrimination such as monitoring his GPS activity, which he claims is not done to non-disabled employees. He also claims Captain Bogenschutz revealed his disability during a meeting, which is breach of confidentiality.

According to court documents, both Elmer and Ballinger are seeking compensatory damages and a court order to prevent these actions from happening in the future.