On Friday, April 17, 2009, The Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, upheld the ability of state and local governments to furlough public employees. The court agreed with the decision of the state government that the fiscal crisis that the state and nation currently faces allows for emergency action.

In citing its opinion the…

Yesterday, April 16, 2009, the Appellate Division conducted oral argument on the Emergency Temporary Layoff Rule. Specifically, the Appellate Division heard argument on the four appeals from the Civil Service Commission’s emergency rule authorizing temporary layoffs, also known as mandatory furloughs. The argument was conducted in the Morris County Courthouse in Morristown, New Jersey…

Yesterday, April 15, 2009, Governor Corzine issued a press release announcing plans by the State department and agencies to implement one-day furloughs of state employees in May and June as a cost-saving measure.

Plans for implementing two furlough days in the current 2009 Fiscal Year were developed by the departments and submitted to the Governor’s…

On April 15, 2009, the Appellate Division decided In the Matter of Cornelius Caruso, Docket No.: A-1612-07T1. In the case, Cornelius Caruso appealed his termination as police officer in the City of Orange Police Department.

Caruso became a police officer in 2000. In 2005, he began to experience serious problems related to his use of alcohol. He voluntarily entered a program at the Carrier Clinic in December 2005. When he did so, he failed to follow the Department’s requirement that he notify the communication supervisor and apply for a leave of absence. No charges were filed with respect to that omission.

Caruso left the Carrier Clinic in March 2006. He was found by the Department to be fit for duty and returned to work on April 1, 2006. Caruso was instructed to make periodic reports concerning his recovery, which instruction was confirmed in a letter from the City’s attorney to Caruso’s attorney. No such periodic reports were ever made.

The Department permits fifteen days of sick leave per year. The Department assessed Caruso for use of 2006 sick leave only during the period from January 1 to January 10, 2006. The period from January 11 to March 31, 2006, was charged as a combination of administrative and compensatory leave. After Caruso’s return to duty in April, he went out on sick leave from April 6 to April 18; May 10 to July 7; October 25 to November 4; and December 12 to the end of 2006. Consequently, by December 2006, Caruso had taken significantly more sick leave than was permitted by the Department.

On December 12, 2006, Caruso left work because of an eye infection. However, according to Caruso, his problem with alcohol use returned in December 2006. On December 22, 2006, Caruso left his home and traveled to Hazelden, a rehabilitation clinic located in Minnesota. He again failed to notify the communications supervisor, although others apparently notified one of his superiors who subsequently contacted Caruso and arranged for him to surrender his service weapon. Caruso also failed to complete the required form for a leave of absence.

As a result, on January 18, 2007, the City filed formal disciplinary charges against Caruso. The disciplinary charges were as follows: (1) performance of duty; (2) insubordination; (3) obedience to laws and rules; and (4) abuse of sick leave. 

Caruso left Hazelden and returned to New Jersey on January 19, 2007. He started intensive outpatient aftercare on January 23, 2007, which required his attendance at a program for four hours a day, four days per week, as well as attendance at Alcoholics Anonymous sessions.

Continue Reading Termination of Police Officer Arising from Substance Abuse Upheld

On April 8, 2009, the Administrative Office of the Courts issued a press release announcing that the Appellate Division will be conducting oral argument on the Emergency Temporary Layoff Rule. Specifically, the Appellate Division, Part H will hear oral argument on the four appeals from the Civil Service Commission’s emergency rule authorizing temporary…

On March 31, 2008, the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, decided the case Detective Sergeant Dean Ackermann v. Borough of Glen Rock and Glen Rock Police Department, Docket Number A-2947-07T2. In the case, the parties appealed and cross-appealed from an order entered by the trial court.

Plaintiff has been a member of…

Most recently, the New Jersey Supreme Court heard argument and deceided the case of Hemsey v. Police and Firemen’s Retirement System, A-15 September 2008 Term, on Certification from the Appellate Division, 393 NJ Super 254 (App. Div. 2007).

Hemsey was hired as a police officer by the City of Trenton in 1973.  In…

Gannet News Services ran an article in today’s Asbury Park Press that discussed how the New Jersey Department of Corrections saved 2.6 million dollars in overtime spending by slightly "tinkering" with the Department’s overtime policies.  As all corrections officers and supervisory personnel are aware, the minor tinkering that is discussed in the article is what…

On March 30, 2009, the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division decided the case In the Matter of Richard J. Rivera, Docket No. A-3672-07T2. In the case, Richard J. Rivera, a county corrections officer assigned to the Monmouth County Correctional Institute (“MCCI”), appealed from a final decision of the Merit System Board suspending him…

Four New Jersey unions are asking a court to stop mandatory furloughs of public workers. Yesterday, March 30, 2009, the New Jersey Policemen’s Benevolent Association and the Communication Workers of America, which collectively represent 93,000 police officers, firefighters and rank-and-file state and municipal workers, filed separate actions in the Superior Court of New…