TRENTON -- A state appeals court has reversed a decision by the head of the State Police to fire a sergeant who attended law school while on leave for an injury, citing questions about the timeliness of the charges brought against him.

According to court records, Sgt. Scott Turner was on medical leave in 2008 when a trooper assigned to an internal affairs unit performed a check at his residence and found he was not there. Division policies require troopers using sick time to remain at their home or "place of recovery" during business hours.

He was later spotted at New York Law School, where he had enrolled.

His supervisors claimed Turner had not gotten permission to enroll in school while on leave. Turner claimed he had notified them about his plans, attending class on vacation time, and argued he was being targeted as a whistleblower because he had raised concerns about "non-compliance" with federal oversight of the State Police.

Turner could not be reached for comment. A spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, which represented the State Police in the appeal, also declined to comment.

The sergeant tried to retire in 2010, but the retirement was put on hold pending the outcome of his internal affairs case.

The sergeant was accused of violating sick leave rules as well as refusing to cooperate with internal affairs investigators and being insubordinate for failing to show up to scheduled interviews with the division's Office of Professional Standards.

The appeals court ruling focused on questions over whether Col. Rick Fuentes, the superintendent of the State Police, adhered to a rule requiring a complaint against a trooper be delivered within 45 days of authorities receiving information sufficient to bring charges.

The appeals panel last week referred the matter to the state Office of Administrative Law as a "contested case," meaning an administrative law judge will rule and, if the judge upholds the firing, the Attorney General's Office will make a final decision.

Turner, who had been assigned to the State Police Academy, claimed in a 2008 federal lawsuit that he was targeted for raising the alarm that training programs regarding search and seizure and police leadership did not meet federal standards.

That matter is still working its way through the court system, with briefs filed as recently as last month.

S.P. Sullivan may be reached at ssullivan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Correction: This story has been updated to clarify the circumstances of Turner's attendance at law school and the status of his leave.