RageMiami Blog: Cop Fired for Porn Past Sues for Job

Cop Fired for Porn Past Sues for Job

Former police officer and reality TV star Mike Verdugo is taking legal action to maintain his police certification after being fired for not disclosing his background in pornography.

According to The Miami Herald, Verdugo was fired when the Hollywood, Fla,. police caught wind of the cop’s foray into pornography. Now the former Design Star contestant has sued in hopes of reclaiming his position. While the Florida Department of Law Enforcement originally agreed to let him keep his certification, the city is opposed to that. A Department of Law Enforcement hearing is scheduled for Thursday.

Though the city has asserted that it would be willing to drop its case if Verdugo drops his, the former officer refuses, hoping instead that the press generated will “be an example of what happens in Florida.”

The 36-year-old said it never occurred to him to list his appearance in 1996’s Rope Rituals on his résumé for the police force three years later. Verdugo explained that he took the well-paying job as a way to explore his sexuality, emphasizing that he did not perform hardcore sexual acts. He was credited in the film as Jeremy Wess.

Regardless of the hearing’s outcome, Verdugo plans to continue a crusade for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. Verdugo’s attorneys, who have taken the case pro bono, announced that any money that may be awarded would be donated to an LGBT charitable organization.