Local

OPD officer to be fired by month's end after denial of disability pension

ORLANDO, Fla. — An officer with the Orlando Police Department will be fired by the end of the month after a pension board denied her request for a disability pension.

Delores Bracero said she couldn't work due to a wrist injury she suffered during training in 2015. Bracero said the injury prevented her from using her service weapon with her right hand.

Bracero has been on light duty for the three years since the injury.

The department told Bracero in April to return to work or risk termination after the city said she had exceeded the time that was allowed.

Bracero wrote an email claiming it was harassment to push her back to work, telling the city that doing so would put other officers and citizens at risk.

If she would have received approval from the pension board, Bracero would have received 80 percent of her salary for life.

The department's contract states that if an officer is denied pension, they can request to return to full duty within three days. The officer would have to get fit for a duty examination and then they'd be able to return to work. The contract also states the officer would be fired on the last day of the month if they chose to not go through with this process.

Bracero has already written a letter to the city claiming she will not go through with the examination.

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Shannon Butler

Shannon Butler, WFTV.com

Shannon joined the Eyewitness News team in 2013.