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Orlando police officer with PTSD after Pulse must undergo exam, board says

Orlando Sentinel - 6/8/2017

June 08--The Orlando police officer diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder after he removed bodies from Pulse nightclub must undergo another medical exam before a board will decide whether he receives a disability retirement pension.

Officer Gerry Realin, 37, has been out of work since shortly after the June 2016 massacre at the club left 49 people dead and dozens more injured.

The Orlando Police Pension Board made the decision at its meeting Thursday.

Board President Jay Smith said policy states that officers seeking the pension go through the examination to officially determine if they are permanently disabled.

"It's a process, and it's worked for several years," Smith said.

Realin's wife, Jessica, spoke on her husband's behalf at the meeting. He was not present.

She urged the board to approve the disability pension because Gerry Realin's doctors say he likely will never be well enough to perform the duties of a police officer again.

"While it will not make him be the person he was before June 12, it will make our family financially secure so he can continue to heal and get better," she said.

She said she would talk to her husband about doing another exam but was upset because he already did one in February.

Smith said that exam did not meet the requirements because it was not performed by a board-approved doctor.

Steven McKillop, an attorney representing the city, said it's important for Realin to have the exam so the city can receive objective information about his health. He said the board must follow its policies so future cases are handled properly.

"This is bigger than this particular incident," he said. "I'm not saying that what happened on June 12 is not a difficult matter for our entire community, much less for law enforcement to deal with. But you have to go by your policies, and there is no proper justification to indicate that he cannot go through this."

The city ordered Realin to start a different job at City Hall in March, but he declined to go based on advice from his doctors.

dharris@orlandosentinel.com, 407-420-5471 or @DavidHarrisOS

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