Gay Officer Contracts HIV on Duty; Wins Benefits

SAN FRANCISCO —  A San Francisco police officer with AIDS has won what is believed to be the first case in the United States proving that a gay officer contracted HIV while on duty.

In a landmark ruling, Administrative Law Judge Stewart Judson found that Thomas Cady was infected with HIV on the job during a 1984 arrest and is entitled to benefits, according to a report in Sunday editions of the San Francisco Examiner.

Cady said that because he is gay, he had to confront a higher standard in proving his case than if he had been heterosexual.

“I hope that anyone else who goes for HIV disability will not have to go through this,” he said of his three-year court battle. “I think it’s a good idea for officers to be tested for the virus every six months so if they suddenly get a positive test they could trace it to a work incident.”

The case could have potentially far-reaching impact because it indicates that gay public employees can overcome presumptions that AIDS always results from homosexual behavior.