Texas Trooper Not Entitled To USERRA Accommodation For Delayed-Onset Service Disability
The Court of Appeals of Texas addressed what it described as an issue of first impression under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA): whether a service member whose military-related disability is discovered after returning to work may invoke USERRA’s reemployment provisions a second time. Le Roy Torres, a Texas Department of Public […]
Borough’s Furlough Is A No-Go, Per Labor Board
This is a follow-up to the article “Double Whammy ULP Decisions Against Pennsylvania Police Chief With Anti-Union Bias” in the December 2025 issue of Public Safety Labor News. Edward Titterton had been a police officer with Jenkintown Borough in Pennsylvania for years when the Borough furloughed him effective December 31, 2024. By that point, he […]
Massachusetts Court Broadly Reads Police Heart Law Presumption
Allena Downey worked as an Ashland, Massachusetts police officer from 2002 until September 2013. Beginning in 2012, she experienced frequent premature ventricular contractions (PVCs), or abnormal heartbeats, accompanied by heart palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, and chest pain. The PVCs persisted despite medication and, later, surgery. After experiencing severe symptoms while responding to a call […]
Las Vegas Officer Awarded Benefits For Off-Duty Equipment Inspection Injury
Derek Burnett worked in Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD)’s traffic division and was assigned a department-issued motorcycle that he took home and was required to park in a locked garage. LVMPD required Burnett to carry equipment including a flashlight, firearm, duty belt, body armor, taser, and knife. Although LVMPD provided some equipment, officers were […]
Washington DOC Cleared To Roll Out GPS Tracking Without Union Bargaining
Teamsters Local 117, which represents Washington Department of Corrections (DOC) officers responsible for transporting incarcerated individuals to medical appointments, court hearings, funerals, and other off-site activities, filed an unfair labor practice charge after DOC implemented “Verizon Reveal” software without bargaining with the Union. DOC had used GPS tracking devices on transport vehicles since at least […]
Township Free To Pass Over Top Candidate On Promotion List
In January 2024, Lower Moreland Township, Pennsylvania, administered promotional examinations for a newly created corporal position and a vacant sergeant position. Ten officers took the corporal exam, and eight officers passed, creating a ranked eligibility list based on combined written, physical, and oral examination scores. The highest-scoring officer on the corporal list was promoted to […]
Iowa Supreme Court Upholds Judicial Review Allowing Sheriff To Challenge Placement On Brady-Giglio List
In April 2024, two Fairfield police officers had arrested a driver for operating while intoxicated when a Jefferson County sheriff’s deputy arrived to assist. During an argument with a handcuffed passenger, the deputy grabbed the passenger and forcefully pushed his head toward the trunk of a vehicle. About a week later, Jefferson County Attorney Chauncey […]
Georgia Officer’s Federal Speech Claim Following Retaliatory Schedule Change Allowed To Proceed
Terry Joyner, a police officer with the City of Atlanta Police Department, brought suit against the City and two supervisors, Chief George Turner and Major Van Hobbs, arising from his non-promotion to captain and a subsequent change to his work schedule. Joyner alleged that, after reporting suspected “ticket fixing” to the FBI and the Department’s […]
Officer Terminated After Firing 25 Rounds At Two Animals Fails In Bid For Arbitration
In September 2022, Clinton Township, New Jersey, Patrol Officer Stephen Hars responded to two separate calls involving wild animals. On September 9, he responded to a report of a potentially rabid raccoon. During that incident, Hars fired twelve rounds before killing the animal. Sixteen days later, he responded to a report of a sick fox. […]
46 Is The New 26? Not At This Maryland Fire Academy
Robert Whittaker was 46 years old when he entered the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services Training Academy in January 2018, making him the oldest trainee in his class. The approximately six-month Academy combined academic coursework with practical exercises designed to prepare trainees for firefighting duties. Whittaker successfully completed all required academic instruction, […]
South Fulton, Georgia Firefighters Protest City Hall Over Skipped Raise, Contract Fight
SOUTH FULTON, GA — Firefighters and retirees from South Fulton’s fire department lined up outside City Hall this week, holding signs demanding the city honor a contract it has already been ordered to follow once this year. At the center of the protest is a 3% raise the city says it will not pay on […]
Pittsburgh Police Union Claims City Owes $5M In Unpaid Health Costs For Officers’ Survivors
Pittsburgh’s police union is accusing the city of violating its contract by refusing to pay for health insurance for hundreds of spouses of dead officers — a decades-long practice the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 1 said it just learned about five years ago. The city’s largest workers’ union wants Pittsburgh to reinstate those […]
LAPD Union Will Oppose Half-Cent Sales Tax Hike Pushed By Firefighters’ Union
The Los Angeles Police Department’s officer union said Tuesday it will oppose Measure FD, the half-cent sales tax measure on the Nov. 3 ballot pushed by the city firefighters’ union — setting up a bitter and expensive clash between two of the city’s most powerful unions. The Police Protective League said it plans to spend […]
Time Is Ticking For AFD To Hire Nearly 100 Firefighters To Reduce Workweeks Next Year
AUSTIN, Texas — Austin Fire is facing a hiring deadline as the department works to fill nearly 100 positions in time to reduce workweeks under a new labor agreement. The workweek reduction is part of the labor contract the city signed with the Austin Firefighters Association in December 2025. The contract creates a new schedule […]
Hartford Leaders Reinforce Board’s Powers To Investigate Police Misconduct
HARTFORD, CT — Hartford’s independent police oversight board received a unanimous show of support this week from city leaders, who voted to strengthen its authority to investigate allegations of police misconduct. Members of the Hartford City Council revised an ordinance establishing the city’s Civilian Police Review Board, a move aimed at eliminating legal challenges raised […]
Evansville, Indiana EMS Supervisor Fired After Sexual Misconduct Testimony
EVANSVILLE, Ind. — The Evansville Fire Merit Commission held a special meeting on Oct. 2 and voted to fire EMS Supervisor Douglas Randell. Randell was suspended for five days without pay on Aug. 17 and was later placed on paid administrative leave. Fire Chief Tony Knight recommended his termination, WFIE reported. Officials said Randell requested […]
Seattle Seeks Return Of $13.1 Million In Overpaid Police Wages
SEATTLE — The city of Seattle is seeking the return of $13.1 million in overpayments to Seattle police officers after the mayor’s office said a “miscalculation caused by use of incorrect base rates” resulted in officers receiving too much in retroactive wage increases. In a statement, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s office said the retroactive payments […]
Court Allows Challenge To Disclosure Of Minnesota Undercover Officer Identities
The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association (MPPOA), which alleged that it represents “over 90% of the police and peace officers in Minnesota,” sued the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST Board) after the Board allegedly released the names and dates of birth of at least 257 undercover officers in response to […]
West Palm Beach Mayor Disputes Firefighter Union Claims On Fire Rescue Staffing
WEST PALM BEACH, FL — The mayor is not disputing that West Palm Beach is growing. He is disputing the claim that Fire Rescue has not kept up. Mayor Keith A. James released a written statement responding to the International Association of Fire Fighters, saying the union’s claims about the city’s investment in Fire Rescue […]
DC Police Union Says Department Needs More Guardrails For Flock Camera Use
There’s a new addition to the list of Flock Safety camera critics in the D.C.-area: The D.C. police union questions if and how the camera network should be utilized by its own department. “A system with such broad and extensive capabilities requires not only significant guardrails, but also full transparency with the public,” Gregg Pemberton, the […]
Court Allows Challenge To Disclosure Of Minnesota Undercover Officer Identities
The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association (MPPOA), which alleged that it represents “over 90% of the police and peace officers in Minnesota,” sued the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST Board) after the Board allegedly released the names and dates of birth of at least 257 undercover officers in response to […]
Arbitrator’s Reversal Of Retaliatory Discipline Upheld By California Court
Tracylyn Lopez, a correctional officer and the California Correctional Peace Officers Association (CCPOA) representative at Salinas Valley State Prison in California, was suspended for 60 workdays after posting excerpts from a prior disciplinary action on a union bulletin board near the prison’s main entrance. The materials related to discipline she had received for directing profanity […]
NY PERB Faults Village For Ignoring Union’s Pre-Bargaining Information Request
A New York Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) held that the Village of Pelham violated New York state labor law by refusing to respond to a police union’s pre-bargaining information requests concerning vacant sergeant positions. The Village of Pelham Police Benevolent Association (PBA) is the exclusive bargaining representative for the Village’s […]
Court Balances Brady Discovery Against Officers’ Cell Phone Privacy
On February 7, 2025, members of the Roanoke Police Department in Virginia and an ATF task force conducted surveillance of Michael Antonio David, Jr. for approximately two hours before initiating a traffic stop. A K-9 subsequently alerted on the vehicle, and officers recovered two firearms from the center console. David was ultimately charged in federal […]
Maryland Court Upholds Police Chief’s Decision To Increase Discipline From Demotion To Termination
The Appellate Court of Maryland held that the Prince George’s County Police Chief complied with the procedural requirements of Maryland’s former Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights (LEOBR) when he rejected an Administrative Hearing Board’s recommendation to demote a police sergeant and instead terminated his employment. Sergeant Shaun Urbina appealed only the discipline imposed for […]