A civil service union has filed an unfair labor practices complaint against the D.C. Attorney General’s Office to fight for the jobs of six investigators — one of whom was accused of downloading pornography on his office computer.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees says the Attorney General’s Office is violating the due process rights of the six investigators: Vincent Covert, Steven Swann, Lawrence Coates, Albert Jones, Karey Hall and Philip Cheeks.
Covert and Jones have been fired, Coates has resigned and the attorney general has moved to fire Hall, Swan and Cheeks, sources say.
If all six lose their jobs, the Attorney General’s Office will have lost nearly half of its investigative staff.
In its complaint, filed Tuesday, AFSCME claims the Attorney General’s Office has violated the labor contract by moving to fire the men.
“The contract requires them to do corrective discipline versus punitive discipline. And they took each one of them and put them on the street immediately,” said AFSCME’s Joseph Bradley.
Attorney General’s Office spokeswoman Traci L. Hughes said privacy laws forbid her agency from discussing personnel matters. But she said the office expects its investigators to live up to the highest standards.
“They’re our first line of defense,” Hughes said. “If you can’t rely on the investigators, we’ll get blown out of the water.”
Hall is being fired for having mislabeled a subpoena form. Sources say Swan, Covert, Coates and Jones were, or are, in similar predicaments.
But Cheeks allegedly downloaded pornography to his officecomputer, sources say. He was suspended in July after his supervisors determined he had downloaded a pornographic cartoon. His bosses claim he downloaded porn again in November, sources say.
Bradley, who is representing Cheeks, says the Attorney General’s Office has no evidence.
Hughes says her office is still reviewing AFSCME’s complaint. She said the office isn’t embarrassed by accusations that it is being strict with its employees.
“We’re the legal office of the city,” she said. “Our credibility is vital.”
At a glance
» There are 13 investigators in the Attorney General’s Office.
» In addition to serving subpoenas, they investigate all parties to suits and criminal cases involving the District.
