SAN DIEGO – A federal judge on Thursday dismissed the overtime claims of about 700 San Diego police officers who alleged they weren't paid for time spent completing numerous tasks before and after shifts.

The officers are part of a class-action lawsuit filed by about 1,500 officers and employees in 2005.

They claimed the city of San Diego owed them more than $50 million in unpaid wages and penalties for intentionally violating federal labor laws and the city's collective bargaining agreement.

This includes not being paid to do jobs before and after shifts, such as preparing or completing arrest reports, preparing for court and cleaning weapons.

Judge Dana Sabraw ruled Thursday that the officers should have filed a grievance to the city, as stated in their collective bargaining agreement, before filing a lawsuit – a step the officers never took.

Sabraw dismissed the claims of about 700 of the officers, saying that they did not work enough hours a week to be eligible for the overtime claims.

The overtime claims for the remaining 800 or so officers are scheduled for a jury trial in January, according to the City Attorney's Office.

Attorney Greg Petersen, who is representing a portion of the officers in the suit, said the case is far from over.

“This has been a hard-fought battle and has a lot of moving parts,” Petersen said.

Officer Jeff Jordan, a police association board member, said the ruling provides another opportunity for the officers to take a step back and see if the problem can be resolved another way.

“We hope at some point to be able to talk to the city and work out our differences,” Jordan said Thursday. He said mediation efforts in March went nowhere.

In November, the federal court ruled that the time officers spent putting on and removing their police uniforms and safety gear is not counted as overtime, the City Attorney's Office said.

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