Florida judge rules two deputies who stood back during the Parkland school massacre should be rehired with back pay and benefits because the sheriff's office took too long to fire them
Two deputies who failed to adequately respond to the massacre at Marjory Stoneman High School three years ago in Parkland, Florida, should get their jobs back, according to a judge.
The ruling has nothing to do with their conduct that day, however, and instead relates to a clerical error and the timing of their dismissals.
Brian Miller and Joshua Stambaugh were fired in the aftermath of the Valentine's Day shooting in 2018, which left 17 people dead.
Sergeant Miller, the first supervisor to arrive on scene, stood outside of the school and hid behind a car for 10 minutes while the massacre was taking place, while Stambaugh, who was off-duty at the time, observed the massacre from a nearby highway.
He initially drove to the school upon the call of shots fired before hiding behind his truck for five minutes, then retreating to the highway.
Broward Circuit Judge Keathan Frink ruled Thursday to uphold the deputies' previous reinstatements, saying they are entitled to get their jobs back, as well as back pay and other pay for accrued sick time, vacation time, holidays, overtime and off-duty pay they stood to make.
A judge ruled Thursday that Deputy Brian Miller (left) and Deputy Joshua Stambaugh (right) should be reinstated and receive back pay following their dismissals in June 2019
Both deputies were criticized for their responses to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas massacre
They can also receive other payments such as car stipends, pension contributions and medical expenses.
The two deputies stand to make around $580,000 combined at their previous pay levels if they are officially reinstated in June.
In 2018, Stambaugh earned $152,857 in base pay and overtime pay, while Miller earned $137,249.
The decision comes after arbitrators ruled that it took too long for the Sheriff's Office to dismiss the deputies after the massacre.
Florida law dictates that police officers must be investigated and disciplined within 180 days of an incident.
Pictured: Judge Keathan Frink, who upheld the deputies' reinstatements on Thursday
Investigators also must say that officer reports are read in their entirety and that forms are accurate, an oath missing from the Sheriff's Office forms for years.
Miller was fired in June 2019, 182 days after an investigation into his actions concluded, as his documents were considered two days after a deadline, relating to a dispute over the oath on the forms.
Stambaugh was fired 11 days after Miller, according to the New York Daily News.
The shooting on Valentine's Day 2018 in Parkland, Florida left 17 people dead
Nikolas Cruz, who was 19 at the time of the massacre, is facing 17 charges of murder
An arbitrator ruled last year that Miller's due process was violated during his dismissal, with an arbitrator making the same ruling for Stambaugh in September, leading to both of them being reinstated.
The Broward Sherriff's Office appealed both of those rulings, leading to the case before the judge on Thursday.
Jeff Bell, the president of the Sheriff's Office Deputies Association, called the judge's decision 'a huge victory.'
'They were wrongfully terminated,' Bell said to the South Florida Sun Sentinel. 'It's like a statute of limitations. Deadlines are there for a reason: to keep checks and balances.'
'Deadlines are set for specific reasons and the Sheriff's Office must adhere to those same guidelines as we demand from the citizens of Broward County,' Bell added.
Lori Alhadeff, whose daughter, Alyssa was killed, expressed disappointment with the ruling.
'Alyssa and 16 others are no longer here because of the failures and inactions by many, including Miller and Stambaugh,' Alhadeff said. 'It is painful for me to once again see there is no accountability.'
Andy Pollack, whose daughter Meadow was killed, added, 'We don't get to bring back the children who were murdered on a technicality.'
The Broward Sheriff's Office also pushed against the ruling, saying the deputies still don't deserve their jobs back.
'There were no victors on February 14, 2018, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School when Miller and Stambaugh failed to do their jobs, and it is [the Broward Sheriff's Office's] belief that the deputies do not deserve their jobs back,' the general counsel for the Sheriff's Office said.
'The union's claimed 'victory' fails to acknowledge that the union fought desperately to prevent the arbitrator from hearing the facts that justified the termination of these deputies, and that this 'victory' was the result of a procedural technicality, which the Sheriff's Office maintains was wrongly decided,' the Sheriff's Office added.
It's not yet clear if they will appeal the judge's ruling.
Edward Eason, a third deputy fired, is still having his case considered by arbitrators. If Eason is reinstated, the three deputies could be entitled to over $1 million in various pay and benefits.
Eason stayed on the periphery of the school during the shooting, claiming that he didn't know where gunshots were coming from despite pointing towards the school, according to bodycam video.
Consequences of that day's shootings went beyond the families affected and towards the eight deputies involved in the response who didn't run into the school.
Arthur Perry, Michael Kratz, and Brian Goolsby previously transferred out of the Parkland district after the shooting.
Richard Seward retired eight months after the school shooting and died of cancer shortly thereafter.
School resource officer Scot Peterson, who was accused by a state commission of being 'derelict in his duty,' is facing second-degree negligence charges, as well as three charges of culpable negligence and one count of perjury.
He has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
Nikolas Cruz, the shooter who was 19 at the time of the massacre, has not stood trial yet for the shooting.
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