Cleveland fire union might go to court to get chief ousted
Cleveland’s CLEVELAND — unionized fire personnel, who demanded Wednesday that Chief Angelo Calvillo be fired for violating civil service rules, say they are willing to go to court if the city doesn’t act quickly.
In letters to the law director, the chief assistant prosecutor and the secretary of the Civil Service Commission, union lawyer Joseph Diemert demanded the city enforce the rules laid out in Cleveland’s charter and fire Calvillo for helping with Mayor Frank Jackson’s re-election campaign two years ago.
Calvillo’s actions warrant immediate forfeiture of his job, Diemert wrote, citing a charter provision that bars civil service personnel from engaging in political activity.
“We’re going to give them a week to respond,” Diemert said in an interview Thursday. “If they don’t, the firefighters are committed to taking the next step.”
That could involve civil action to push the city to enforce the charter provisions or swearing out a misdemeanor criminal complaint in Municipal Court.
The city, in a statement Wednesday, said the chief ’s actions were not improper. It had no further comment Thursday. Calvillo could not be reached for comment.
What’s the complaint?
Members of the Association of Cleveland Fire Fighters Local 93 — about 750 personnel — say Calvillo should be fired and criminally charged for helping circulate nominating petitions for Jackson’s re-election bid.
Calvillo’s signature as circulator can be seen on certified copies of the petitions the union made public. Jackson was elected to a fourth term as mayor in 2017. Calvillo is accused of circulating petitions in February and March 2017.
Calvillo testified during a deposition last September that he helped collect names on the mayor’s petitions. The deposition is part of an employment discrimination lawsuit against Cleveland pending in federal court. Calvillo is named as a defendant.
Cleveland’s charter bars classified personnel from taking part in political campaigns. Civil service employees may not “circulate or seek signatures to any petition provided for by primary or election laws, or act as a worker in favor of or in opposition to any candidate for public office.”
Cleveland’s Civil Service Commission rules specifically list the election for mayor as one in which employee activity is limited. But in a section that bars circulating petitions, the rules say the bar does not apply to a nonpartisan election.
Law Director Barbara Langhenry, in a statement, said Wednesday that the rules didn’t apply in this case because city elections are nonpartisan.
“The Civil Service Commission’s Rules do not prohibit a city employee who is a member of the classified service from circulating a candidacy petition in a nonpartisan election,” Langhenry said. “Cleveland’s mayor is nominated in a nonpartisan primary election. The Charter gives the Civil Service Commission authority to adopt rules.”
What does a legal expert say?
Jonathan Entin, a law professor for Case Western Reserve University, said forcing a prosecution could be an uphill fight for the union.
The charter provides that employees who violate the provision could be charged with a misdemeanor, fined up to $1,000 and be immediately be fired.
But prosecutorial discretion is a broad power, Entin said. That said, the union may be able to use the case to put public pressure on the Jackson administration.
“It could be used as a cudgel to beat up the chief,” Entin said.
Does the charter provision only apply to partisan political activity?
Such provisions have a long history in the United States as good government protections that insulate civil service employees from political pressures, Entin said. But he acknowledged he might not interpret the specific language in Cleveland’s charter as only applying to partisan races.
Even if the provisions apply, there’s also a question as to whether the city must enforce maximum punishment, Entin said.
Do the union and chief get along?
The fire union has long been at odds with Calvillo.
The union, a branch of the International Association of Fire Fighters, has complained about working conditions in fire stations and raised concerns about worker safety related to staffing and equipment issues.
In February, the union took a no confidence vote. About 620 members voted on the resolution against the chief. More than 600 supported it.