By Anthony G. Attrino
nj.com
NEWARK, N.J. — A corrections officer who was fired from the Essex County Jail over a litany of allegations – including misconduct and incompetence – will get his job back, along with back pay and attorney fees, an administrative law judge decided Tuesday.
Frank James, 51, a veteran officer, was fired from the jail on Doremus Avenue in Newark on March 9, 2020, after the county’s Department of Corrections accused him of incompetence, failure to perform his duties, conduct unbecoming a public employee, neglect of duty and other violations.
According to a notice of disciplinary action, James was accused in January 2020 of taking away a USB drive from an inmate that allegedly contained movies, taking the drive home and then failing to properly return the device through the chain of command. He was also accused on six occasions of failing to conduct facility tours and inmate counts.
The disciplinary notice accused James of falsifying close-custody reports, of fraternizing with inmates, failure to ensure doors were locked, failure to properly supervise inmate meals, and of abandoning his post for 16 minutes.
The department suspended James and sought his removal. James waived his right to a hearing and the department issued a Final Notice of Disciplinary Action, removing him from his job.
James appealed his firing two days later. But due to COVID-19 and other issues, the case dragged on for two years, according to his attorney, Patrick Toscano of Caldwell.
“We were negotiating back and forth. It was just a little weird. It didn’t look like the guy did anything wrong at all, like zero,” Toscano said during an interview on Wednesday.
“All we were demanding initially was that he be reinstated and we waived anything else. We just wanted him put back on the job,” Toscano said. “Long story short, (Essex County) didn’t agree. They wanted him terminated. They didn’t make any offer.”
Administrative Law Judge Barry E. Moscowitz dismissed the case on Monday and ordered James reinstated to his job, along with two years of back pay, at $95,000 per year, and attorney fees, which could amount to $150,000.
“I found that the DOC had not proven by a preponderance of the evidence allegations contained in its specifications,” Moscowitz wrote.
“(The allegations) were based on incomplete or partial video surveillance, which is insufficient, especially in the absence of any eyewitness testimony,” the judge wrote.
“In short, the investigation was incomplete, and its conclusions and recommendations were unsupported,” Moscowitz wrote.
Toscano said with none of the officer’s co-workers willing to testify against him, the case seemed to hinge solely on allegations made by managers at the facility who didn’t want James working there.
“It was quite apparent that Officer James was considered guilty by his superiors at the Essex County Jail until he was proven innocent,” Toscano said. “Officer James deserved better.”
Guy Cirillo, the jail’s warden, and Antonio Pires, the associate warden, did not immediately respond Wednesday to calls and emails seeking comment on the judge’s decision.
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