THE RIGHTS OF POLICE OFFICERS
WACOPS
October 21-22, 2015
AGENDA
________________________________________________________________________
October 21, 2015
9:00
Introduction And Recent Developments In Law Enforcement Labor Issues
Recent developments from around the country in the area of public safety labor
relations.
• A review of pending or recent changes in state public sector bargaining laws and
the politics surrounding police unions.
• Recent court decisions and laws enacted by Congress.
• Discussion of significant changes in the law in the areas of FMLA, the ADA,
fitness for duty examinations, physical fitness plans, and other areas.
• A review of national trends on wages and benefits; the evolution of police-fire
parity.
Will Aitchison.
11:00
The Fair Labor Standards Act
• A review of FLSA litigation involving numerous law enforcement agencies.
• Canine programs.
• Calculation of the overtime rate.
• How the Department of Labor’s rules affect the standards regarding whether
supervisors are excluded from FLSA coverage.
• Liability for standby and on-call status.
• Compensation for off-duty training.
• The status of time worked in a police academy.
Will Aitchison.
12:00
Lunch.
1:00
Garrity, Weingarten, Brady, Miranda, and Loudermill.
•
•
An officer’s Fifth Amendment Garrity rights, when and how they apply in
critical incidents and internal investigations, the DOJ’s position on Garrity, and
the evolving case law on the extent of immunity under Garrity.
The Weingarten right to representation in disciplinary interviews, how it can
apply in settings as varied as drug testing, critical incidents, and witness
interviews, and what happens if Weingarten rights are violated.
•
The ever-changing law on the rule in Brady v. Maryland and how it applies to
police disciplinary records. How officers get on and get off Brady lists, whether
being placed on a Brady list necessarily results in termination, and lawsuits by
officers seeking to be removed from Brady lists.
• If an officer is ordered not to leave the premises or is confined in a secure
facility, is the officer in “custody” for Miranda purposes?
• An officer’s procedural due process rights under Loudermill v. Cleveland Board
of Education.
Will Aitchison.
4:00
Adjournment
October 22, 2015
9:00
Collective Bargaining.
•
The topics that are mandatory for bargaining.
•
What a “past practice” is, and how a past practice can restrict an employer’s
ability to make changes in policies.
•
Interest arbitration decisions in Washington – how have police been faring?
Will Aitchison.
10:30
Body Camera Video And Other Evidence In Disciplinary Investigations
•
•
•
•
The evolution and current status of body camera programs in United States policing.
What the evidence is showing about the impact of body cameras on the use of force,
citizen complaints, and police practices.
The different body camera systems, their features, and their pros and cons. The cost of
body camera systems, including storage and data processing costs.
Policy issues attendant to a body camera program, including public records laws, faceblurring software, officer review of evidence before giving statements, privacy
considerations for citizens and officers, and monitoring of videos for general
compliance with departmental rules.
The upsides and challenges of video evidence in disciplinary proceedings. How video
evidence can only present a partial account of what occurred, and can record
something different from what the officer saw.
Will Aitchison.
1:00
Just Cause For Discipline, And The Particular Issue Of Social Media
•
•
A review of the 12 tests for just cause for disciplinary action.
Progressive discipline, mitigating circumstances, and the employer’s burden of
proof in discipline cases.
•
•
The need for clarity in an employer’s rules.
The “disparate treatment” defense, and the relevance of past practice in similar
cases.
•
The emerging rules of discipline for off-duty and on-duty use of social media.
Labor board decisions on the potentially protected status of social media
communication.
Anil Karia.