A Lancaster County District judge found evidence that a fall during training played a role in a Lincoln firefighter recruit being fired, but he dismissed a claim that the man was fired in retaliation.

District Judge Steven Burns dismissed the lawsuit Anthony Grazziano filed against the city of Lincoln after he was fired in 2008.

"The reality is every time there's a trial someone wins and someone loses," Vince Powers, his attorney, said Wednesday after hearing of the judge's order.

All Grazziano could do, he said, was put the facts forward and let the judge decide.

"That's how the system works," Powers said, adding that he did not anticipate an appeal.

On March 26, 2008, Grazziano fell from a 40-foot ladder while carrying a fellow recruit down a three-story training tower. He fell about 15 feet and hit another recruit holding the ladder.

The recruit being carried managed to grab the ladder, but Grazziano and the recruit holding the ladder went to the hospital with minor injuries. Both reported to training the next day.

A month later, Grazziano was fired, and the 38-year-old Omaha man later sued the city alleging the fire department fired him in retaliation because of the fall, and a resulting Journal Star story and worker's compensation claim.

At trial in October, Powers argued that Grazziano had embarrassed the department and that his weekly reviews went from good to bad as a result of the fall. And, he argued, a captain humiliated Grazziano by suggesting he apologize to fellow recruits.

Assistant City Attorney Jocelyn Golden countered that at 5-foot-4 3/4 and 230 pounds, Grazziano couldn't meet the standards required of him. She said he struggled with physical training and other tasks before the fall.

Burns sided with the city.

"There was significant evidence of the plaintiff's failure to meet physical fitness expectations," he wrote in an order this week, "and his fall from the ladder was a physical fitness consideration."

Fire Chief Niles Ford referred questions to the City Attorney's Office.

Said Golden: "We're pleased with the result and agree with the court findings."

Grazziano is working as a financial representative at TD Ameritrade in Omaha but said last month he still wants to be a firefighter.

Reach Lori Pilger at 473-7237 or lpilger@journalstar.com. Cory Matteson contributed to this story.