Protesters Rail at Refusal to Air Fired Officer’s Appeal

Faced with protesters calling its decision a “charade,” the city’s civil service board on Monday refused to hear the appeal of a fired police officer who is one of nine women suing the police chief and his top assistant for alleged sexual harassment.

In a unanimous decision, the commission concluded that it had no legal authority to consider Rochell Maier’s request to get her job back because she was a probationary employee and did not have the right to appeal her firing to the civil service board.

“This is not about lawsuits pending against the city or about actions brought by other city employees,” said board Chairman Albert M. Graham Jr., quoting from a prepared text of the decision. “Nor will anyone use the board as a forum to determine if sexual harassment exists in any city department. . . . The power of the board is limited.”

As Graham read the decision aloud in the City Council chambers, he was interrupted repeatedly by Maier’s attorney, Edward L. Faunce, and a small contingent from the Bayview chapter of the National Organization for Women.

“This is a charade. You are reading from a prepared text,” Faunce told Graham, raising his voice.

“You are an embarrassment to this city. You’re a puppet,” said Tamara Mason, a NOW chapter member. “You are condoning sexual harassment. You have jurisdiction to hear this case.”

The civil service board hears job-related disputes of municipal employees. In addition to Graham, the commissioners are Clinton M. Hoose, Dayna R. Petit, Paula H. Godfrey and Hilbert Carson.

Maier, 31, who was fired in July for not successfully passing her tryout period, contended that the civil service board should hear her case because her superiors sexually discriminated against her in their evaluations of her performance.

Under city law, Faunce argued, the civil service board could hear Maier’s appeal and evidence related to her employment status. He specifically contended that Maier’s superiors extended her probation period illegally after she took a leave to attend to her dying father and then fired her several months later when she completed the tryout.

In contrast to her experience, Faunce argued that a male probationary officer was granted a leave of absence without having his probation period changed. Similarly, Maier says she was harassed at work because she took time off to fulfill her obligations as a reserve U.S. Army captain, while a male reservist on the force was never bothered.

On the other hand, City Atty. Robert H. Burnham argued that Maier was only a probationary employee, hence she had no legal right as do permanent municipal employees to appeal her termination to the civil service board.

Burnham presented the board with Maier’s personnel evaluations for a 12-month period, which show that she did not live up to department standards during her tryout and was properly fired.

According to those reports, her overall performance was consistently rated below necessary skills and cited repeatedly for judgment errors, lack of knowledge about routine functions and declining performance under stress.

Maier’s attorneys, however, maintain that her poor evaluations were retaliation for her complaining about sexual harassment and spurning the sexual advances of Capt. Anthony Villa Jr., who is being sued along with Chief Arb Campbell.

The lawsuit alleges that women employees were repeatedly harassed by Villa and that Campbell knew about it and did nothing to investigate complaints about his top assistant.

In addition, police dispatcher Peri Ropke has accused both men of raping her at a Police Department party that was held at a local landfill in 1981. After Ropke made the allegation at a news conference on Oct. 15, City Manager Kevin J. Murphy placed Campbell and Villa on paid administrative leave.

In its decision, the civil service board issued no opinion as to whether sexual harassment existed at the Police Department. Commissioners said they were precluded from addressing Maier’s case because city law states that they can only hear the employment disputes of regular employees who have successfully completed their tryouts.

“I’m outraged,” said John Lewis, another attorney representing Maier. “This was Pontius Pilate washing his hands. This decision was not something they prepared in executive session (Monday night). It was decided sometime before. This is a hot potato they do not want to touch.”

Lewis said Maier will now file a case in Orange County Superior Court, which could either hear her appeal or order the civil service board to reconsider her request for reinstatement.

Burnham, the city attorney, declined to comment on the board’s decision.

After the hourlong hearing, Graham fielded heated remarks from Bayview NOW members in the lobby of the City Council chambers. He responded saying that the city could not legally consider Maier’s complaint.

“Why don’t you have a spine and do something about it,” Mason shouted. “You are sending a terrible message to women who complain about sexual harassment.”