Union: HRA Scapegoated Officers In Fracas Who Lacked Needed Training

In the wake of the resignation of one Human Resources Administration peace officer who was embroiled in a Dec. 7 confrontation in which an 18-month-old child was yanked from a client’s arms, and the possible discharge of a Sergeant involved in the incident, Teamsters Local 237 President Greg Floyd said the agency was scapegoating the employees after failing to provide adequate training.

“No other peace officer in the state is treated like the HRA peace officers,” he said in a phone interview in early February. “They are told to go out and do the job without giving them training. They don’t properly train them in matters including 35 hours in dealing with deadly force,” as he said was required under state law. “They give them the bats and tell them to go out and do their job.”