WASHINGTON — Patience and persistence has paid off for Teresa Chambers, who was fired as U.S. Park Police chief in 2004 in what turned into a highly controversial situation in the nation’s capital.
The Merit Systems Protection Board has ruled that she can have her job back, plus more than six years of back pay. It concluded that the evidence against her was weak, and that the Interior Department retaliated against her, according to the ruling first reported by WTOP radio Tuesday.
WTOP reported that she was fired for publicly commenting to the media about budget problems and complaining about a staff shortage that was forcing her to cut back on patrols.
WTOP said that in 2004 the Park Service’s deputy director, Don Murphy, said Chambers’ broke the rules by commenting publicly about budget discussions and lobbying.
“In sum, we find that the agency’s evidence in support of its actions was not strong at the time it took the actions, the record demonstrates that the acting officials had a significant motive to retaliate against the appellant, and the agency did not show that it took similar actions against similarly-situated non-whistleblowers,” the merit board wrote in its ruling.
The Washington Post reported that her attorney, Paula Dinerstein, called the decision “a wonderful ruling, not only for Chief Chambers but for thousands who believe that honesty is part of public service.”
The Post reported that the National Park Service, which oversees the Park Police, was reviewing the ruling.
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READ RULING BY THE MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD
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Fired because Cheney only liked to hunt on private reserves where there is guaranteed victim deer, and friends, to kill.