D.C. forced to rehire 36 fired cops and give $14M backpay - Axios Washington D.C.Log InLog InAxios Washington D.C. is an Axios company.

D C forced to rehire 36 fired cops and give $14M in back pay

Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images Thirty-six D.C. police officers who were fired over misconduct allegations got their jobs back and $14 million in back pay from the Metropolitan Police Department, . Why it matters: MPD was forced to rehire the cops after they appealed their termination, showing how difficult and costly it is to fire bad cops. Details: One of the officers was fired after he was found guilty of exposing his genitals to a woman in a parking lot in 2010. An outside arbitrator overturned his termination in 2014. He was reinstated in late 2016 and received $362,000 in back pay. Three of the cops had been terminated for misconduct that the auditor classified as a “threat to safety.” The big picture: Advocates for better policing aren’t happy with this news. Neither is MPD, which said in a statement that it is “concerned about the reinstatement of any member terminated for misconduct and the impact on public safety and trust.”The department supports the auditor’s recommendations, which include legislation before the D.C. Council to eliminate arbitration from the appeal process. What they’re saying: “We’re recommending legislation to put elected officials in the driver’s seat on what is and is not behavior that merits termination from MPD,” D.C. Auditor Kathy Patterson said in a statement. What’s next: The D.C. Council has a bill that would establish a deputy auditor for public safety and give the Office of Police Complaints more authority. It would also create a public database of all disciplinary records of MPD officers. Get more local stories in your inbox with .Subscribe Support local journalism by becoming a member.

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