A Michigan State Police Trooper was intoxicated at a Michigan State Police Troopers Association (MSPTA) event and engaged in serious misconduct. Surveillance video showed the trooper placing her fingers into the “anal crevice” of a male coworker, striking another coworker in the genitals, and attem
In 2018, Robert Goldsmith ran for sheriff of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, and had several deputies support his candidacy. Lieutenant Randall Martin did not support Goldsmith. Instead, Martin reported colleagues for unlawfully campaigning for Goldsmith while in uniform, maintaining that their conduc
Firefighters David Barron and Michael Lynch, filing on behalf of a class, alleged that the City of Chicago improperly manipulated promotional procedures for lieutenant positions. For decades, the City’s practice involved creating an eligibility list from examination scores and promoting candidates
In April 2021, Roxboro Police Officer SeanPatrick Leech responded to a report of an unknown boxcutter found in the bedroom of a rape victim. After confirming with the original investigating officer and his sergeant that the item was not involved in the crime, Leech disposed of it. When the District
A dispute arose during the summer of 2023 between the Deputy Sheriffs’ Benevolent Association of Onondaga County, New York (DSBA) and Onondaga County, when the Sheriff’s Office was experiencing staffing shortages in the Custody Division. DSBA leaders proposed a temporary “double time-and-a-half” we
In 2022, voters of Vancouver, Washington, approved a property tax levy known as Proposition 2. The levy was designed to address chronically slow emergency response times by the Vancouver Fire Department. The Department’s plan was to use specific units for low-priority medical calls, freeing larger e
In 2023, the City of Englewood Police Department in New Jersey changed schedules, increasing shift hours from 8.25 to 11 hours per day. This change impacted supervisors’ ability to take vacation under the established past practice, which allowed supervisors to take vacation as long as at least one
In October 2021, Officer Brandon Davis of the Washoe County School District Police in Nevada suffered serious injuries to his head, shoulders, elbows, and knees while breaking up a student fight at Reed High School. He filed a workers’ compensation claim and received benefits under the Nevada Indust
Officer Maria Adamopoulos of the Ocean County Department of Corrections in New Jersey was on temporary disability leave due to a work-related injury from January 2022 through January 2023. Upon her return, she was denied full holiday pay for the thirteen official holidays that occurred during her
The Illinois Appellate Court has affirmed a labor board’s dismissal of a petition seeking to represent police supervisors, holding the board correctly declined to analyze whether a new state constitutional amendment overrides a statutory ban on supervisory bargaining, as such constitutional questio
Sergeant Jeffrey Tagmyer, a Pittsburgh police officer, was subpoenaed as a witness by his union, the Fraternal Order of Police, to testify in a discipline grievance arbitration for another officer, Sergeant Brian Elledge. After the initial arbitration hearing was continued, City Assistant Solicitor
Passaic County in New Jersey employs sheriff’s officers and corrections officers represented by three Policemen’s Benevolent Association locals (PBAs). Collective bargaining agreements that were in effect from 2007 through 2014 provided that “[u]pon retirement, the Employer will continue to provide
In July 2018, the Whidbey News-Times reported that the City of Langley, Washington, had fired Police Chief David Marks in connection with a use of force incident from November 2017. Later that month, Eric Hood submitted a Public Records Act (PRA) request to the City. His request stated:“Please discl
Gregory Garcia was a New Jersey police officer employed by the Wharton Police Department. Following a search of his residence, he was charged with multiple firearms-related offenses. On November 14, 2022, he entered a guilty plea to possession of a large capacity ammunition magazine in violation of
Claudia Cass was hired in 2006 as a corrections officer for the New Hampshire Department of Corrections. In December 2022, during a period of low staffing, she worked a shift that she believed fell below the prison’s “critical minimum” staffing level. Several days later, she emailed the prison warde
Julie Copeland, a police officer employed by the City of Redmond, Oregon, challenged discipline imposed after her involvement in a high-speed vehicle pursuit, alleging that the City retaliated against her for protected whistleblower activity and engaged in related tortious conduct. The Oregon Court
The Ninth Circuit reinstated a First Amendment retaliation claim brought by Pleasanton, California, Police Department (PPD) Officer Peter McNeff, holding that he plausibly alleged that Police Chief David Swing terminated him because of protected political expression. The Court reversed the distric
Marilyn McBride, a Prairie State College police officer in Illinois, returned from a lengthy medical leave in March 2025 to find she had been placed at the bottom of her bargaining unit’s shift seniority list. Both the College and her representative, the Illinois Council of Police (ICOPs), maintaine
A Melrose, Massachusetts, firefighter who also served as an officer in the Air National Guard challenged the City of Melrose’s interpretation of Massachusetts General Laws c. 33, § 59(a), which requires participating public employers to provide paid military leave.The operative facts were undispu
In August 2019, a Jersey City police lieutenant hosted a pig roast at his home, where he drank six to eight beers. An argument ensued with his girlfriend over leftover food and drinks. During the dispute, the lieutenant stated, “Today is your day,” retrieved his shotgun from a safe and, as his girlf
The Missouri Supreme Court suspended attorney Ryan Christopher McCarty from the practice of law for disclosing confidential client information after his termination as associate general counsel for the Kansas City Police Department (KCPD). McCarty began working for the KCPD in June 2022 and was term
Editor’s Note: This is a companion case to the case covered in the article “Wisconsin Deputy Warden Properly Fired For Denigrating Muslims” on p. 3 of the September 2025 issue of Public Safety Labor News.Richard Schneiter began his career with the Wisconsin Department of Corrections in 1977 as a cor
The Ninth Circuit reversed summary judgment against Thomas Ray Fleming, a former Boise Police Department lieutenant, holding that a reasonable jury could find he was constructively discharged in retaliation for protected whistleblower activity under the Idaho Protection of Public Employees Act (IPPE
Charles Bozzo was terminated from his position as a corrections officer for the Michigan Department of Corrections in July 2019 after a coworker accused him of harassment. He challenged his termination through his union’s arbitration process, which ended with an arbitrator ruling against him on Marc