Page 27 - WEST FOP BlueNote Nov-Dec 2017 Issue NEW FINAL

Kevin Tully…
Continued from p. 25

When an officer is singled out for an arbitrary denial of a grievance – without it even being heard as in this case – that
is the kind of poison that is repugnant to everything that an honest police employer should stand for. These kinds of oppressive
and dishonest acts, essentially grounded in employer untruthfulness, represent true dangers to the families that make up the
police community.

When are police employers going to accept that Courts have held that law enforcement officers “are not relegated to
a watered-down version of constitutional rights.” Garrity v. New Jersey, 385 U.S. 493, 500 (1967). Garrity has been on the
books for a half century, and Wilmington still does not get it. The constitutional rights of police officers should be re-
spected. Senator Jesse Helms spoke to the problem of the abuse of police officers:

Law enforcement officers across America face great challenges every day as they fight the war against crime
and drugs. They are on the front line; their lives are in constant jeopardy. All of us owe them our gratitude
and our respect... [T]oo often law enforcement officers lose their jobs for frivolous reasons - or for no reason
at all. For example, an officer may have a difference of opinion with a superior. Senator Jesse Helms, Con-
gressional Record, January 31, 1991, Vol. 137, No. 21, 102nd Congress (emphasis added).

In conclusion, the FOP is honored to have members like Kevin Tully. The easy thing for him to do would have been
to not rock the boat. Kevin Tully is going to succeed in sinking Wilmington’s boat, which is full of nonsense. This case is a
sad reflection of our times. But rather than supporting Kevin Tully and its many other fine officers, Wilmington played the
deceit card. Our Constitution and the rule of law cannot tolerate this untruthful abuse. Our Supreme Court needs to send a
strong message that law enforcement officers must not be subjected to lies by their own employers about promised employment
benefits.

“NOT-SO-FINAL” LEGISLATIVE REPORT

By Jeff Gray – Legislative Agent

For as long as I have represented the State Lodge, upwards of 2000 bills will be introduced during this two

Fraternal Order of Police my report to the membership this year session.
time of year has been a “final” Legislative Report. This
One very positive note for the State early-on was
Session the legislature merely recessed in early July and
will be reconvening a number of times before the “short- the encouraging State budget prospects for the coming bi-
session” commences in May 2018.
ennium. State economists projected a revenue surplus of
The General Assembly convened for its Biennial
2017-2018 Session with an “organizational session” on more than $550 million for the fiscal year ending June 30th.

Wednesday, January 11, 2017, then adjourned. They re- Executive and legislative branch staffers were operating off
turned two weeks later (January 25th) to begin the full ses-
a believed surplus that could result in an additional $1.9 bil-
sion. (This early organizational session is something new,
lion in collections starting July 1, 2016 through mid-2019.
begun three Sessions ago, and is solely to elect officers,
It was the Senate’s turn this year to first draw up a two-year
adopt rules and announce plans for the upcoming session.)
budget proposal and pass it. The House then approved a
The turnover rate among legislators decreased sig-
version from which both chambers then ultimately crafted
nificantly this Session. Twenty-four new members of the
170 member total are “freshman” this year. There are five a compromise bill (i.e. Senate Bill 257, the State Budget

(5) new Senators this Session and 19 new Representatives. Act).

Of these new members, 17 are Republicans and only 7 Adding to the drama of the first few weeks of the

Democrats. Session, there had been much media coverage and talk prior

Things seemed to get off to a slow start this Ses- to the start of the Session about efforts to repeal HB2, the

sion. In the first two weeks a little over 150 bills had been “bathroom bill.” A compromise was finally reached and a

introduced. But the pace quickly picked up. By the time of bill which had been introduced in and passed the House and
the legislature’s first recess the last day of June 1609 bills
addressed issues related to licensing boards and a U.S. Su-
had been introduced in the House and in the Senate com-
preme Court case, House Bill 142, was stripped and used as
bined. It is estimated - - based on past numbers - - that
a vehicle to repeal House Bill 2. Finally it was over.

A number of interesting things effecting the FOP

and the interests of law enforcement occurred in the first six

months of this Session. Continued on Page 31

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