Police official alleges discrimination at DPS

A police official has taken the Department of Public Safety to court for alleged discriminatory practices in promoting and hiring police officers.

Police Sergeant James C. Deleon Guerrero asked the Superior Court yesterday to end DPS’ alleged discriminatory practices by compelling the department to comply with the Personnel Service Rules and Regulations and implementing a competitive selection process.

Deleon Guerrero is currently the officer in charge of the DPS Communication and Technology Section.

Saipan Tribune tried but failed to contact DPS Commissioner Santiago F. Tudela for comment.

In his petition for judicial review, Deleon Guerrero asked the court to direct a DPS-wide desk audit of all civil service employees to evaluate and assess their duties, responsibilities, rank, classification, salary status, and promotion eligibility.

He wants a court order that would compel DPS to comply with the Civil Service Act and PSSRR rules governing civil service employees when it comes to promotions, salary or merit increases, and competitive selection of all officers similarly situated or disparately treated.

According to Deleon Guerrero, DPS unlawfully withheld or unreasonably delayed compliance with the PSSRR as well as the Commonwealth Salary Act of 1988 and the Civil Service Act.

He alleged that DPS failed to follow the competitive process for civil service employees and unlawfully or unreasonably delayed its compliance with those PSSRR regulations to date.

Deleon Guerrero alleged that the hiring of police sergeants Alfred Celes, Paul T. Ogumoro, and Vicente Tagabuel were unlawful and those actions should be set aside.

In his petition, Deleon Guerrero’s lawyer, Robert T. Torres, stated that DPS promoted Police Officer II Alfred A. Celes to Police Sergeant on Dec. 23, 2007.

In doing so, Torres said, Celes leapfrogged over the position of Police Officer III and went to the highest salary level for a DPS sergeant.

Guerrero immediately filed his letter of informal grievance addressed to DPS Capt. Lawrence M. Camacho.

Prior to that, Guerrero also filed another grievance with then acting Commissioner Aniceto T. Ogumoro about recent promotions and salary increases.

Torres said the acting commissioner and Capt. Camacho ignored Guerrero’s informal grievances.

After filing his grievance relating to Celes, Torres said, Guerrero was surprised to discover the hiring of former Attorney General’s Office’s investigator Paul T. Ogumoro as a police sergeant.

Ogumoro’s salary, the lawyer said, was higher than Guerrero’s despite not having any time-in-grade service within DPS for several years.

Also, Torres said, Guerrero learned that another officer, Sgt. Vicente Tagabuel, was hired as a provisional appointee without any announcement or posting of vacancy.

Tagabuel’s salary, Torres said, was higher than that of Guerrero despite being out of service from DPS for several years.

Because of DPS’ alleged failure to respond to Guerrero’s grievances, he sought the advice of a lawyer and on Feb. 13, 2009, filed his formal grievance with DPS. DPS Police Sgt. Thomas Blas Jr. joined in Guerrero’s formal grievance.

Torres said DPS again ignored Guerrero’s formal grievance and the department, through its commissioner, never responded in any formal or informal way.

On April 22, 2009, Guerrero filed a notice of appeal to the Civil Service Commission. In doing so, Guerrero requested a formal evidentiary hearing.

On April 27, 2009, the commission determined that it could not consider Guerrero’s appeal for lack of quorum to hear and decide the appeal in a timely manner.

The commission then ruled that by denying a hearing, Guerrero exhausted his administrative remedies and could proceed to have the unresolved grievance heard before the Superior Court.

Since DPS has ignored Guerrero’s informal and formal grievance, Torres said Guerrero has not had a full opportunity to obtain evidence and testimony that would normally result in a well-developed administrative record.

“Further, the Civil Service Commission denied Guerrero’s request for a hearing at which time he would be able to present testimony by calling witnesses and directing the production of documents for the commission’s consideration of the record,” he added.