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The federal Mediation and Arbitration Board has upheld the firing of a Hartford sanitation worker for taking video of an undercover police car and two officers at the city’s gas pumps, then posting it on Instagram. it has been shared more than 1,000 times.
The message contained the words: “Yo, they in a Lexus bro’ you better be careful my n*****, be careful. They are out there.”
Mishawn Williams, whose job was to get into the back of a garbage truck and lift containers into the dumpster, said he took the video and posted it on social media, according to the ruling. board, posted on the government website.
The question before the group after the union’s complaint is whether he was fired for “just cause,” according to the ruling.
On March 5, 2021, Williams was in the parking lot at the end of his shift while still on the clock when he saw an undercover police car with two officers using city gas pumps, the background in the decision.
The video showed the officers, vehicle make, model, color, and the license plate was visible.
He also posted a photo of the officers and the vehicle and said: “Be safe and be sharp.”
The video and photo were shared about 1,000 times on Instagram and then migrated to Facebook, according to the verdict.
Police Officer Hector Morales, in a unit that monitors social media and other criminal activities, discovered the posts.
“The police department and the arresting officers said the vehicle had been tampered with and their safety was in jeopardy,” the job board’s background said.
Williams repeatedly told investigators he did not intend to harm the officers and wrote letters of apology to each, according to the verdict.
Williams told them he thought the officers were just doing safety and wanted to tell people to drive safely and follow the rules.
The union, Municipal Employees Council 4, Local 1716, filed a grievance, arguing that Williams’ offense did not rise to the level of a shooting.
The union argued that Williams was a “child and an immature male” and should therefore be terminated or receive a lesser penalty than firing, according to the decision.
An employee for 18 months before the incident, Williams was a good employee who showed up early to do what was asked of him, the background said.
The union argued that Williams should be given a second chance, as he “didn’t fully understand the consequences of his actions,”
The union also argued that the city doesn’t have a social media policy that prohibits sharing sensitive information with the public, but that, even if there was one, Williams posted the material because he didn’t think the information was sensitive.
The city’s task force said Williams’ actions showed a “gross lack of judgment” and could have jeopardized the lives of two undercover Hartford police officers.
The decision of the task force states: “But for the quick discovery of the post of officer Morales, the officers would have been placed in a coma.”
In a unanimous opinion attached to the documents, activist and mediator Stephen R. Ferrucci III said that he was initially inclined to agree that Williams’ actions were “a stupid mistake by a young man.” can be used as a learning experience,” especially since the city has no written police officer for photographing and videotaping that scene.
Ferrucci said Williams was subject to a review as a “significant” addition to the department. The union asked that the “time worked” be suspended to match Williams’ 10 months without pay.
But Ferrucci said he reassessed everything after hearing from his teammates.
He goes back to the claim that Williams said, “Yo, they in a Lexus bro’ you better be careful my n*****, be careful. They are out there.” warning the public to obey the law.
Ferrucci concluded that this is not the type of message, but rather, “a message aimed at a group of people who are likely to commit crimes.”
Ferrucci also wrote: “In this day and age of people going to target police cars and shoot the police, it’s reasonable to believe that this hidden car has been released on internet if used in crime. It can be recognized by people involved in criminal activities, thus putting the officers in a big problem.
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