PEABODY, Mass. -- A former Peabody police lieutenant denied his pension after he was convicted of illegally accessing the records of some colleagues has sued to recover $70,000 a year in income and benefits.
Edward Bettencourt's suit against the state pension board in Peabody District Court claims the board's decision was "arbitrary and capricious," and in violation of his constitutional rights.
The suit asks the court to reinstate Bettencourt's retirement benefits and make the board pay his legal fees.
A lawyer for the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission says it acted legally.
Bettencourt, a 24-year veteran, was convicted in April of 21 counts of accessing the confidential information of 20 fellow officers and one Salem officer in 2004 to look up their Civil Service Exam scores.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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