Minutes: Civil Service Board 03-07-23

City of Miami

3500 Pan American Drive
Miami, FL  33133
www.miamigov.com

Meeting Minutes

Tuesday, March 07, 2023
10:00 AM
Commission Chambers

Civil Service Board

Troy Sutton, Chairperson
Rodrigo Jimenez, Chief Examiner
Rafael Cabrera, Board Member
Ulysses Garcia, Board Member
Travis Lindsey, Board Member

Pledge of Allegiance

The meeting was called to order at 10:19 am, with the Pledge of Allegiance.  At commencement of the meeting, attendance was as follows:

Adoption of Agenda

Chair Sutton asked if there were any revisions to the Agenda.  Hearing none, a motion to adopt the Agenda as printed was considered and resulted as follows:

Motion by Board Member Lindsey, seconded by Board Member Garcia, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

A.        Approving of the Minutes

A motion was entered to approve the Minutes as presented, which resulted as follows:

Motion by Board Member Lindsey, seconded by Board Member Garcia, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

B.        Personnel Matters

C.        Military Leaves of Absence

On behalf of the Board, the Chair thanked Firefighter Conway for his service, then entertained a motion to approve the extension, which resulted as follows:  

Motion by Board Member Jimenez, seconded by Board Member Lindsey, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

On behalf of the Board, the Chair thanked Lieutenant Rojas for his service, then entertained a motion to approve the extension, which resulted as follows:  

Motion by Board Member Jimenez, seconded by Board Member Lindsey, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

D.        Disciplinary Matters

E.        General Items

Griska Mena, Attorney, appeared before the Board an expressed no objection to ACA Panoff’s Motion to Strike and Remove Employee Exhibit #42 from the record. The Board entered a motion to approve the request, which resulted as follows:  

Motion by Board Member Lindsey, seconded by Board Member Cabrera, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

Chair Sutton asked for the status of the Findings in this matter. Attorney Michael Braverman, Michael Braverman P.A., appeared on behalf of the Appellant. ACA Adanna Ferguson, City Attorney’s Office appeared on behalf of the Department. Attorney Braverman thanked the Board for allowing additional time for all parties to discuss the Findings of Fact as presented from the Board’s Special Counsel, at today’s meeting.

Following discussion, the Board entered a motion to ADOPT the Findings of Fact presented by Special Counsel, which resulted as follows:

Motion by Board Member Cabrera, seconded by Board Member Jimenez, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

Zachary Riback, Attorney, appeared via Zoom on behalf of Nicole Tyler, former Police Officer, requesting a continuance of the Civil Service Board hearing until a date after Ms. Tyler’s FDLE matter is resolved. ACA Ferguson expressed no objection to the request.

Following discussion, the Board made a motion to GRANT the continuance, which resulted as follows:

Motion by Board Member Lindsey, seconded by Board Member Garcia, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

F.         Reports

Board Member Cabrera discussed the meeting calendar, noting that no hearings are scheduled for the month of May; therefore, he asked to cancel May 2^nd and May 30^th regular Civil Service Board meetings. He went on to say any pending administrative matters can be addressed at the May 16^th meeting. Following discussion, a motion was made to CANCEL the May 2^nd and May 30^th meetings, which resulted as follows:

Motion by Board Member Cabrera, seconded by Board Member Jimenez, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

G.        Requests for Hearings

H.        Today's Hearings

NOTE: At the onset of the Hearing, Member Garcia was not present and did not partake in the Whistleblower Hearing.  

As a matter of expediency, the Board agreed to hear the Grievants’ cases together. The Hearing began January 24, 2023, and concluded today, March 7, 2023. The Grievants were represented by Griska Mena, Staff Counsel, South Florida Police Benevolent Association. The Miami Police Department was represented by Stephanie Panoff, Assistant City Attorney, Office of the City Attorney.

Day 1: January 24, 2023

The Board entered into the scheduled Whistleblower Hearing in accordance with Florida Statute 112.3187 on behalf of Brandon Lanier, Commander & Wanda Jean Baptiste, Police Officer.

Griska Mena, Attorney, provided opening statements. Witnesses appearing at the request of the Grievants were as follows:

1. Elizabeth Albert, Investigator, Civilian Investigative Panel. Questions were posed by Members Cabrera and Jimenez.

2. Angelica Rodriguez, Police Officer, City of Miami Police Department. Questions were posed by Members Lindsey, Cabrera and Jimenez.

3. Walter Singer, Police Officer, City of Miami Police Department. Questions were posed by Member Lindsey.

4. Orlando Benitez, Police Officer, City of Miami Police Department. Questions were posed by Members Lindsey and Cabrera.

5. Robert Robinson, Police Sergeant, City of Miami Police Department. Questions were posed by Member Cabrera.

Day 2: January 31, 2023

The Board reconvened with the scheduled Whistleblower Hearing in accordance with Florida Statute 112.3187 on behalf of Brandon Lanier, Commander & Wanda Jean Baptiste, Police Officer.

Additional witnesses appearing at the request of the Grievants were as follows:

1. Elizabeth Albert, Investigator, Civilian Investigative Panel. Questions were posed by Members Cabrera and Jimenez.

2. Michelle Verdin, Police Sergeant, City of Miami Police Department.

3. Bianca Joseph, Commander, City of Miami Police Department. Questions were posed by Members Lindsey, Cabrera and Jimenez.

4. Ramon Carr, Police Lieutenant, City of Miami Police Department. Questions were posed by Members Lindsey, Sutton and Cabrera.

5. Kevin Ruggiero, Police Lieutenant, City of Miami Police Department.

6. Chief Manuel Morales, Director, City of Miami Police Department. Questions were posed by Members Cabrera, Jimenez, Sutton and Lindsey.

7. Brandon Lanier, Police Lieutenant, City of Miami Police Department, testified on his own behalf. Questions were posed by Members Lindsey, Cabrera and Jimenez.

Day 3: March 7, 2023

The Board reconvened with the scheduled Whistleblower Hearing in accordance with Florida Statute 112.3187 on behalf of Brandon Lanier, Commander & Wanda Jean Baptiste, Police Officer.

No testimony was presented by Wanda Jean Baptiste, Police Officer.

Both parties rested their cases, then provided closing arguments. Exhibits were introduced and entered into evidence by both parties.

The Board entered into deliberations.

Following discussion by Board Members Lindsey, Cabrera, Jimenez, and Sutton, the Board entered a motion in the matter of Wanda Jean Baptiste, Police Officer, to report to the City Manager the Grievant failed to prove the burden under the Whistleblower Statute, which resulted as following:

Motion by Board Member Cabrera, seconded by Board Member Sutton, that this matter be Approved, failed by the following vote:

Having had a failed vote in the matter of Wanda Jean Baptiste hearing, the Board proceeded with deliberation of Brandon Lanier, Police Lieutenant.

Following discussion by Board Members Lindsey, Cabrera, Jimenez, and Sutton, the Board entered a motion in the matter of Brandon Lanier, Police Lieutenant, to report to the City Manager the Grievant failed to prove the burden under the Whistleblower Statute, which resulted as following:

Motion by Board Member Cabrera, seconded by Board Member Sutton, that this matter be Approved, failed by the following vote:

Member Cabrera remarked that there had been a lot of information over the course of three (3) days and expressed his dismay at ending with a tied (2-2) vote.  He added that he will reconsider when deciding on moving forward with a four (4) member panel; however, he respects his colleagues’ decisions.  Special Counsel advised that he will prepare Findings and Recommendations for Board approval, which will then be forwarded to the City Manager.

ADJOURNMENT:

A break was taken at: 10:31 am – 10:55 am. 

There being no further business before the Board, a motion was entered to adjourn the meeting at 12:50 pm, which resulted as follows:

Motion by Board Member Cabrera, seconded by Board Member Jimenez, that this matter be Approved, passed by the following vote:

SIGNATURE: Troy Sutton, Chairperson

ATTEST: Tishria L. Mindingall, Executive Secretary