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JULY 18, 2008:NWLP 7/15/08 10:53 AM Page 7 ...Vancouver cop reinstated after two-year ordeal (From Page 1) barricade standoff. Barker (then the assistant chief) and another com- mander were in the area and stopped at the scene. The standoff ended with officers and a canine unit going into the house and bringing out the sus- pect. No officers were injured, but the police dog suffered a stab wound. Police Chief Martinek praised the officers for their work. In a memo to the officers, he wrote: “Another ex- ample of excellent police work by our men, women and K-9s. Nice job to all of our officers involved in this.” Two weeks later, on April 26, Barker called for a meeting with Luse to talk about his performance as a lieutenant. At that meeting Barker criticized Luse’s performance during the April 12 standoff. According to testimony from the arbitrator’s report, Barker told Luse that he felt “disre- garded or dismissed” by Luse. Barker went on to tell Luse that he was not effective as a lieutenant and that he planned to demote him to sergeant. Luse refused to be demoted volun- tarily, which set in motion an internal affairs investigation. On May 22, 2006, Luse was sent a formal complaint alleging that he was insubordinate to Barker at the April 12 standoff and that over the past year he had failed to meet deadlines and written job performance expectations. Barker said that at the scene of the standoff Luse on three occasions ig- nored his request to find out if the man barricaded in the house had any weapons. On June 29, 2006, Luse was noti- fied of a second internal affairs inves- tigation, this one for alleged insubor- dination for not following through on an order to call an assistant city attor- ney who had concerns that an officer under Luse’s command forcibly ar- rested a man without legal justifica- tion. That arrest took place on May 26, 2006. On July 9, 2006, Luse was put on administrative leave with pay — un- heard of in the police department for a performance-based issue. “Admin- istrative leave is normally used for high liability incidences that involve officer shootings or excessive abuses,” Luse told the NW Labor Press. Luse collected his salary of $8,200 a month, plus benefits, from the De- partment while he sat at home await- ing the outcome of the internal inves- tigation. On Oct. 11, 2006, internal affairs released a memo stating that there was a “lack of strong, reliable and credible factual support sufficient to sustain a finding of neglect of duty, incompetence and insubordination,” against Luse. Then, in late November 2006, a second round of interviews was or- dered. According to the arbitrator’s report, in addition to revisiting the original complaints, internal affairs wanted to pursue allegations that Luse made false statements to investi- gators. A separate complaint was filed. On Feb. 7, 2007, internal affairs is- sued a report finding Luse in violation of proper police conduct by lying to internal affairs and for insubordina- tion. He was fired on March 28, 2007. Luse appealed his termination through Local 11. The union brought in attorney Michael Tedesco to assist. “I’m thankful that the union be- lieved me and stood with me. I can’t overstate that enough,” Luse said. After he was fired, Local 11 hired Luse as an organizer. Luse said that when he met workers he pointed to his own experience. “I told them that I’ve never worked without a (union) contract. You have insurance for your house and car. A union contract is insurance for your job. I know first-hand how important that can be. If you are wrongfully ter- minated or your labor rights are vio- lated, you have an advocate. I’m the poster boy for being wrongfully ter- minated.” On June 21, 2008, arbitrator Beck confirmed that by exonerating Luse of all charges. Lt. Luse says he will go back to work “with a clean slate” and he doesn’t anticipate any problems. “It was a convincing win for me. I just want to go back to work and do my job.” A new police chief (Cliff Cook) was hired in April 2007. Barker is back at his post as assistant chief. (Editor’s Note: A recent assessment of the City of Vancouver’s budget proj- ects a deficit of more than $6 million for the 2009-10 biennium. Approximately 76 percent of the City’s budget is com- prised of salary and benefit costs for police officers and civilian support staff. Unless steps are taken to remedy the anticipated shortfall, the Vancouver Police Department will have to reduce its operating budget by $2.3 million.) Zachary Zabinsky • Social Security • SSI - Disability Claims Personal Attention To Every Case Working For Disability Rights Since 1983 NO FEE WITHOUT RECOVERY 621 SW Morrison, Portland 223-8517 Michael E. 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