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The Spokane police union is asking the department to reinstate and give back pay to a sergeant fired after a drunken hit and run crash.
A grievance notice was sent to Chief Anne Kirkpatrick, Assistant Chief Jim Nicks and Human Resources Director Dave Chandler Dec. 30.
Kirkpatrick sent Bradley N. Thoma a formal letter of termination that same day. 
Thoma, 44, (right) was fired after refusing an offer from Kirkpatrick to accept a layoff and be eligible to be rehired as a detective if he completes a court deferral program for his drunken driving charge. In the meantime, the city would work with Thoma to determine if he was eligible for other positions.
That offer came after Kirkpatrick ruled that Thoma was unable to work as a police officer under the court program because it requires him to have an ignition interlock device on his car.
But that decision was wrong because it didn’t rightfully considers Thoma’s alcoholism as a disability, said Thoma’s lawyer, Bob Dunn.
Dunn filed a $4 million claim against the city of Spokane, claiming Thoma was wrongfully fired because he’s an alcoholic.
A handful of citizens (pictured above) protested the lawsuit outside his downtown Spokane office today.
A letter Dunn sent Tuesday to Kirkpatrick shows he’s confident he’ll prevail.
“Firing someone without pay for two years, then suggesting he would be “eligible” to re-apply at that time without guaranteed rehire, doesn’t constitute an accommodation,” Dunn wrote. “If that is the legal advice you are receiving, it arrogantly ignores how police departments across the country are dealing with this stress related, police culture disability and what the experts have to say about necessary departmental intervention and/or prevention efforts for this disease.”
He predicted the litigation will result in Thoma’s reinstatement with damages awarded.
Reporter Meghann Cuniff writes about public safety news from the Inland Northwest and beyond.
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AXe on January 06 at 6:19 p.m.
Spokane’s own terrorists.
Bin Drinken, Bin Driven, Bin Lawyering, Bin Guilding
empyrius on January 06 at 6:56 p.m.
Figures the union backs the criminal …: birds of a feather . . .
PlanB on January 06 at 9:20 p.m.
This…. “union”, for lack of a better word, needs to be made redundant for the protection of the citizens of Spokane.
lewis8457 on January 07 at 9:03 a.m.
A lot of cops cheat on their wifes because of the pressures they are under. i tend to think they do what they can get away with and drinking is just one of the many things they can do in excess with out consequences. case in point.
i have no faith in the justice system in this town.
D Statler on January 07 at 9:09 a.m.
There are plenty of deserving officers that would make good detectives.Why on earth would the Chief even cosider a promotion to detective for this kind of behavior. Just goes to show that most of our problems start from the top.Shame on the police union for even bringing these kind of demands on our system!
Verbal on January 07 at 9:41 a.m.
Undooly prosecuted - I think its called “falling upwards”.
This story is flat-out disgusting. Why are our police seemingly held to such a lower standard than everyone else?
terrymr on January 07 at 9:50 a.m.
The disability argument isn’t worth much - he didn’t request any accommodation for his “disability” until after he’d committed a bunch of crimes and been suspended for misconduct.
Axe on January 07 at 2:59 p.m.
Let me get this correct. If I go down to the bars and get blitzed BAC .171, drive around, smack some lady w/my truck and leave the scene of the crime, I can keep my job as a police officer because my criminal activity is a disability?
Dayum sign me up.
Mary_Keel on January 07 at 3:57 p.m.
Ten to one he gets paid his full salary as long as the lawsuit is open; it always comes down to the money. Why would anyone be surprised that the police union would stand behind this character or that a lawyer would be happy to represent him in an utterly ridiculous lawsuit? Of course, I’m sure every time he arrested a person for drunk driving he was considerate of the person’s “disability,” right? What really burns everyone up is the arrogance that makes him think he should be able to get by with things that others can’t just because he’s a police officer - that’s just plain wrong.
lewis8457 on January 08 at 6:30 p.m.
hard to respect our men and women in blue when they have no law to follow but can hold us to it. hard to respect them….