Friendly Fire: The Illusion of Justice- A Gay Police Officers Story of Coming Out and Harassment

Adam Bereki began his career in law enforcement at age 15. By 20, he was sponsored to the police academy and graduated with top honors in his class. He was well respected and regularly received commendations from his supervisors and people on the streets he patrolled. It all changed when his co-workers began to suspect he was a closeted gay man. He was sexually assaulted and harassed by his partners. Charges were fabricated against him, and his evaluations--once focused on praise--became tools to plot his destruction at the hands of those he once trusted. Having known it would be career suicide to come out, he tolerated the attacks for years until he had finally had enough. Rather than quit, he mustered the courage to stand up to the department and filed over a dozen allegations of misconduct. The harassment only escalated, leading to an unfair demotion with a reduction in pay. Though the idealistic optimism with which he began his career was fading away, he persisted and ultimately settled one of the biggest gay discrimination lawsuits in history. His journey, however, was far from over.