Officers Can Win Termination Arbitration And Lose Certification
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority fired officers Mark Spencer and Sherman Benton. Spencer was terminated for excessive force and untruthfulness; Benton was fired for an off-duty domestic dispute and untruthfulness. The officers’ labor organization, the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), challenged the terminations in arbitration. A Board of Arbitration overturned both discharges, finding that although the Authority had legitimate grounds for disciplining the officers, that lengthy suspension, not…