The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana filed a lawsuit against Lake County, Indiana and the Lake County Sheriff, for discrimination against a former employee who was disabled on the job.
Thomas Ostrowski is a former correctional officer and police officer of the Lake County Sheriff Department. Mr. Ostrowski was forced to retire following a line-of-duty incident which left him disabled. Since his forced retirement in 2003, Mr. Ostrowski has received payments in accordance with the pension plan established by the Lake County Sheriff. However, Mr. Ostrowski is not receiving a cost-of-living increase in his pension payments, which non-disabled retirees and surviving spouses do receive.