Judge sides with former Sturgeon police chief over firing

A Boone County judge said Sturgeon did not follow the law when it fired its police chief.

Judge Jeff Harris sided on Tuesday with former Chief Greg Halderman in part of his lawsuit against the city and city council members. Harris said the city council’s closed-door meeting in March 2017 that ended in Halderman’s ouster did not follow proper procedure set out in state law, and that doing so violated Halderman’s due process.

Halderman sued shortly after the city council voted 3-1 to fire him, claiming he abused alcohol and behaved inappropriately toward some jail inmates. The lawsuit claims Sturgeon city leaders did not make a record of the March hearing, and did not let Halderman address some of the evidence presented.

Andy Hirth, Halderman’s attorney, told ABC 17 News that he would ask Harris at a Jan. 22 hearing to reinstate the former chief to his old post, along with 20 months of back pay.

“The statute provides that he get reinstated to his position, and he gets back pay for the time that he was out of a job,” Hirth said.

The city did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday evening.

The ruling provides a legal test to the state law passed in 2013 that gave police chiefs greater protection. The law said a city must notify a police chief of their intention to fire them, then hold a hearing where both sides can present evidence. Two-thirds of the city’s elected officials must then decide whether or not to fire the chief for certain conduct, which includes alcohol abuse.

Harris said hearings held under that statute should be considered a “contested case” under Missouri’s Administrative Procedures Act. Those hearings require “procedural formalities,” Harris said, such as the presentation of witnesses and evidence, as well as the requirement the city send a written notice to the chief beforehand.

Hirth said the city relied on hearsay evidence to make its case against Halderman, and didn’t keep a record of the hearing for Harris to review.

“They basically didn’t comply with all of the things that they were supposed to do,” Hirth said. “And as a result, the chief didn’t have a fair opportunity to defend himself.”

Marshall Wilson, attorney for the city, told ABC 17 News in November that the city did follow all the steps laid out in state law, and that Halderman was asking they do more.

Harris’ ruling leaves two conflicting legal interpretations of the 2013 state law. Judge Rick Roberts determined that the hearing process should be considered a non-contested case in a lawsuit involving Winfield, Missouri’s former police chief.