To Serve and Collect

The Times special investigation, "To Serve & Collect" was published simultaneously in the St. Petersburg Times from March 31 through April 2, 1996.

Scores of Tampa Bay police officers and firefighters have retired on generous -- and tempting -- disability pensions.

Tampa's $636-million police and fire pension fund is a cash cow for both pensioners and pension fund insiders.

Having problems with the boss? For some police and firefighters, a disability pension can be the way out of a sour situation.

In some of Tampa Bay's biggest cities, 1 in every 3 police officers and firefirghters retires on a disability pension.
Police and firefighters who go out on disability are rarely called back to work --even if they recover 100 percent.
Disability pensions for police and firefighters often are more lucrative than regular pensions -- and the money is totally tax-free.
Hepatitis, heart attacks, lung cancer -- the list of diseases presumed to be job-related is growing all the time.

This illustration shows how much a specific injury is worth on average in workers' compensation inthe Tampa Bay area.

The Continuing Story