In January 2016, plaintiff Viola Faruku, 31, a security officer for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, was terminated from her position. Prior to her termination, Faruku took a trip to Albania and was scheduled to return to work on Aug. 25, 2014. Her return flight from Albania the prior day was canceled. She arranged a substitute flight the next day, Aug. 25, but missed her connecting flight out of Istanbul. As a result, she was in Turkey on the day she was to be back at work. The following day, Faruku was able to fly to London, but she allegedly became ill there and was unable to travel for a few weeks. She eventually returned to work on Sept. 16, 2014. One month later, in October 2014, Faruku told her supervisors that she was pregnant. Faruku’s child was born in June 2015, and Faruku went on maternity leave until December 2015. Two hours after she came back, her sergeant told her that she was being “suspended, pending an investigation” into her 2014 vacation and was told to go home. Faruku was accused of giving false reasons to explain her actions, and she was fired in January 2016 for “improperly extending her vacation.” Faruku sued Los Angeles County and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. She alleged that the defendants’ actions constituted pregnancy discrimination and pregnancy leave discrimination. Faruku’s counsel contended that Faruku was terminated because she was an expectant mother and took a leave of absence after returning home. Defense counsel disputed pregnancy discrimination, noting that Faruku was assigned light duty as a result of her pregnancy and allowed to take her requested maternity leave from June 2015 to December 2015. Counsel contended that Faruku’s fiancé was previously in London with Faruku and that Faruku failed to call her supervisors to keep them updated on her situation when she was supposed to be returning from vacation. Defense counsel also contended that around the time that Faruku was assigned light duty for her pregnancy, a sergeant made Faruku aware that she was being investigated by the police department’s internal-affairs unit for allegedly providing false reasons for returning late from vacation. Counsel argued that based on the findings of that investigation, Faruku was appropriately terminated for improperly extending her vacation., Faruku claimed that suffers a loss of income as a result of her termination. She also claimed that she suffers from emotional distress as a result of losing her job. Faruku sought recovery of past and future lost wages, and damages for her past and future emotional pain and suffering.