.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — An arbitrator has overturned the firings of two Santa Fe officers who were dismissed in July for allegedly falsifying reports of the takedown of a suspect in a Walmart parking lot that was recorded on a police car dash camera.

Arbitrator Philip B. Davis, without elaboration, on Tuesday found there was “not cause” for Police Chief Ray Rael’s finding that Officers Troy Baker and Steve Cosban falsified their written reports of the arrest. Davis ordered that they be given back their jobs.

Davis did uphold lesser findings against Baker and Cosban and two other officers, Daniel Parsons and Matt Champlin, who were temporarily suspended by Rael.

Under Davis’ decision, Baker ends up with a three-week suspension for violating arrest and use of force procedures, and Cosban gets a four-week suspension, for the same two violations and for not following search and seizure rules.

ADVERTISEMENTSkip

................................................................

City Manager Robert Romero said Tuesday night that he still feels he made the right decision in upholding Rael’s recommendation to fire Baker and Cosban.

“Based on the evidence before me and the facts at the time, I feel I made an appropriate determination,” Romero said. “But, at the same time, I respect the process.” Asked when Baker and Cosban are expected to return to work, Romero said, “Probably as soon as possible.”

Rael was asked whether the officers will be welcomed back to his department.

“Absolutely,” the chief said. “As long as they comply with policy and directives in the future, there won’t be any issues.”

Rael cautioned that the arbitrator’s ruling does not equate to total vindication for the officers. “While the arbitrator perhaps felt that the punishment was too harsh,” Rael said, “he still ultimately determined that the officers were abusive and engaged in excessive use of force, as evidenced by the upholding of the suspensions.”

Rael added that he intends to “hold the department to the standards of policy, law and common sense.”

“The ultimate goal is to serve the citizens of Santa Fe and not ourselves,” he said.

The officers’ attorney, Tim White, did not return an email for comment late Tuesday. Santa Fe Police Officer’s Association President Adam Gallegos said that Baker and Cosban being back on the force is a good thing for the city.

“Troy Baker is one of the most dedicated law enforcement officers that I know,” Gallegos said. “And Steve Cosban is very, very professional and dedicated to the job.”

“There may have been some issues that were questionable,” he said of the case. “But not to the level of termination.”

City government will have to reimburse Baker and Cosban for lost pay and benefits from the time they were fired in July, except the time period of the suspensions upheld by the arbitrator.

Davis also upheld use of force and arrest procedure violations against Champlin and Parsons — the two officers who had been suspended but not fired — but dismissed a search and seizure violation against Champlin.

‘You will not win’

The firings and suspensions resulted from the March 2010 arrest of Michael Schaefer at the Walmart lot, after police responded to a call of an alleged disturbance by Schaefer at a nearby apartment complex. The police report of the incident stated that after officers pulled over the car he was riding in, Schaefer became belligerent and instigated a fight with police.

The dash-cam video shows that after Schaefer had been told he could leave the scene, he returned and an officer tossed his wallet on the car and it fell to the ground. After an officer told Schaefer he didn’t mean for that to happen, the officer — identified in disciplinary reports as Parsons — appears to think Schaefer is staring him down and says, “Don’t look at me like you want to fight, because you will not win.”

When Schaefer responds, “I do want to fight,” officers quickly surround him and take him down. Officers can be heard saying things like, “Oh, you do?,” “Really?” and “You’re going to jail.”

The charges against Schaefer were subsequently dropped, and Schaefer has threatened to sue the city over injuries he says he suffered. The arresting officers’ report of the incident says Schaefer cut his ear during the takedown and, while in police custody, “voluntarily hit his head on the wall.”

White and the Santa Fe Police Officers Association have blasted Rael’s determination that the officers acted inappropriately, citing a prior Internal Affairs investigation that cleared the officers.

Rael said over the summer that his own review “did not support” the conclusion of the original IA investigation, which was conducted under the administration of former Chief Aric Wheeler, now a police captain.

But Rael sent the case to Deputy Chief Gillian Folmar-Alessio and ended up firing Cosban and Baker for allegedly falsifying reports on the encounter with Schaefer. Folmar-Alessio’s report says Cosban and Baker prepared reports that portrayed “a different sequence of events” than what was recorded on the police car camera.

She said Schaefer was incorrectly characterized as aggressive or menacing and said similarities among various reports suggested “possible collusion” to support “a bad arrest.”

Cosban’s report says Schaefer “came at” an officer as if he were going to strike the officer, and Baker reported that Schaefer “raised his hands like he was going to strike” the officer.

In addition to back salary, the city also has to pay Baker $4,137 to cover the penalty he incurred for making a withdrawal from his deferred compensation plan after he was fired. Cosban will be reimbursed $2,975 for similar withdrawal penalties.