DETECTIVE IS ORDERED
REINSTATED
Detective Debra White, a
veteran member of the Montclair Police Department, was discharged from
her position on January 18, 1996. Arbitrator Michael Prihar recently
issued an award to reinstate her with all benefits of employment.
White was removed from
her position over a dispute with a detective supervisor occurring on
September 9, 1995.
While she was the
duty detective on the evening of the 9th, and subject to call out, she
had also volunteered to work an overtime slot in the dispatch center,
believing that she could get one of several dispatchers to respond and
cover her overtime position in the dispatch center, if she received a
call out as the "duty" detective.
Her detective supervisor
noticed that she was working in the dispatch center when he arrived at
the station to supervise an unrelated detective operation. He walked to
the dispatch center and asked White if she was indeed the duty detective
for that evening. She responded that she was.
Upon hearing this, the
supervisor invited her to the coffee room and while he filled his
thermos with coffee, he inquired as to what she would do if there was a
call out. She explained her understanding that she could call upon an
off-duty dispatcher to respond and that there should not be any problem.
She had all of her
detective gear at the station anyway, so she could probably be in the
field on the detective assignment faster than if she had to come from
home on the call out.
The detective supervisor
testified at the hearing that he concluded from this conversation that
she had made specific arrangements with a particular dispatcher for such
a contingency, thus placing that off-duty dispatcher on something of a
"stand by" status.
Although the supervisor
testified that he could not point to any specific words that White
said which unequivocally indicated that White had placed a dispatcher on
"stand by", he did testify that the overall "gist"
of her remarks "implied" this to be the case.
In addition to this
detective supervisor's testimony that he had been misled by the
detective, and that she "lied" to him, the department also
attempted to besmirch the detective's credibility and reputation by
bringing in other previous incidents of alleged dishonesty to
supervisors. All of his failed.
Arbitrator Prihar issued
his advisory decision recently finding that the evidence did not support
the charges that White was dishonest to her supervisor on September 9,
1995, or that she was dishonest on the internal investigation which
followed those events.
Prihar issued an award
calling for Debra White's reinstatement in good standing with back pay
and benefits, to her position as a detective retroactive to January 18,
1996.
Throughout the proceedings
leading to her termination, and through the contested hearings before
Mr. Prihar, Ms. White was represented by Ms. Muna Busailah and Mr.
Michael P. Stone of Michael P. Stone P.C. of Pasadena.
Under the city rules, the
city may appeal to the City Counsel to set aside the arbitrator’s
award.
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