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Nebraska Officer Successfully Defended In Off-Duty Incident

On the night of September 30th, 2000, FOP member Ric Hallett was off duty at his home when he received a phone call from his distressed daughter.

His daughter was at a party and wanted a ride home due to a situation with an abusive boyfriend.

Sgt. Hallett and his son responded and went to pick up his daughter. Upon arriving at the party they were approached by a group of teenage boys who were yelling profanities and threatening physical harm.

At this point Sgt. Hallett was acting as a concerned father, but as the situation deteriorated towards a violent confrontation, he was acting in his capacity as a police officer. The daughter’s boyfriend initiated a fight with Sgt. Hallett’s son. In his attempt to break up the fight, Sgt. Hallett was grabbed by the throat and was unable to break free. He bit the arm of the assailant and subsequently received two fist blows that produced cuts above his eye and ear. To avoid further danger, Ric and his son broke free from the struggle and managed to escape in their vehicle.

In the aftermath, the boyfriend filed a complaint alleging that Sgt. Hallett assaulted him. The complaint led to a State Patrol investigation and Ric was arraigned on a criminal charge of third degree assault. This is a Class 1 misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine.

The Hastings, NE police department initiated an administrative inquiry and the chief was considering suspension and possible termination.

The department’s internal investigation found that Sgt. Hallett did not violate department rules and regulations when he took action the night of the party. The criminal action went to a jury trial and in July of 2001 Sgt. Hallett was found not guilty.

Unfortunately, Ric Hallett’s problems were not over at this point. He had a legal defense bill in excess of $13,000 and his claim with the FOP Legal Defense Plan was denied under the interpretation that he was not acting within the scope of his law enforcement employment. According to his department’s rules and regulations, off duty officers are required to take enforcement action when necessary. Sgt. Hallett appealed his case to the FOP Legal Plan Board of Trustees and successfully established that he was acting within his capacity as a police officer. Upon further review, the Board overturned the denial and the Plan reimbursed him for $13,600 in legal defense costs.

This case perfectly illustrates two valuable benefits of an FOP owned and operated program. One of the unique features of the FOP Plan is a board review process to hear denied coverage appeals and address the service concerns of participating members. Secondly, Sgt. Hallett had his choice of attorneys.