POLICE Sgt. Peter Raymond Camacho, through the Superior Court, is urging the Civil Service Commission to enter a final decision regarding his grievance against the Department of Public Safety.
Camacho, represented by attorneys Robert Torres and Oliver Manglona, wants CSC to issue a decision or decline to issue a decision within 15 days from Nov. 20 so that the parties may seek appropriate relief from the courts.
According to his motion filed in court, Camacho “is an aggrieved civil service employee who has filed multiple grievances against the DPS.”
“Mr. Camacho’s grievance was properly transmitted to the CSC on Sept. 1, 2021, after completing the informal and formal grievance processes pursuant to the Personnel Service System Rules and Regulations or PSSRR. Since Sept. 1, 2021, Mr. Camacho has yet to receive a final ruling on his grievances after completing a formal hearing with the CSC and after submitting a 70-page proposed findings of fact/conclusions of law on May 5, 2023, as ordered by CSC’s [then-appointed] administrative hearing officer, Jacqueline Nicolas,” the motion filed by Camacho’s lawyers stated.
Waiting nearly six months for a final ruling is “crippling” for Camacho, his attorneys said. “As the saying goes, ‘justice delayed is justice denied.’ ”
They added, “Solving claims of discrimination or harm must be done expeditiously. Six months for a final ruling is an abhorrent [affront] to Mr. Camacho’s due process rights under the PSSRR. Additionally, the CSC’s inability, delay, and reluctance to issue a timely final ruling on Mr. Camacho’s grievances are a dereliction of its regulatory and statutory duties to ensure an effective, fair, and speedy grievance procedure for its civil service employees.”
CSC “has violated its regulatory and statutory duties by impinging on Camacho’s due process rights to seek timely resolution of his grievances under the PSSRR, and by further delaying the outcome of its final determination so that he may seek appropriate recourse with the courts,” the motion stated.
“Mr. Camacho implores the CSC to issue a final ruling on his grievances within fifteen days of this filing, or if the CSC is incapable of doing so, without the necessary funding that has contributed to its delay, shall issue an order declining to issue a final ruling for the purpose of allowing the parties to pursue its appeal with the courts.”
The CSC has told lawmakers that it needs $64,800 so it can hire an administrative hearing officer.
Camacho’s attorneys said the CSC is not immune to the requirements of the PSSRR.
The commission must issue a decision with or without the assistance of an administrative hearing officer immediately, the lawyers added.
“If the CSC feels it is not equipped to handle Mr. Camacho’s formal grievance, it should decide that it cannot perform its responsibility so that Mr. Camacho can seek adequate legal recourse with the courts and without further delay from CSC,” the motion said.
“It is fundamentally unfair for Mr. Camacho to have his grievances shelved by the CSC due to its incompetence and unpreparedness when a more capable reviewing, adjudicative body can administer and facilitate his grievances in a timely and effective manner,” the motion also stated.
CSC should not be “excused from its statutory and regulatory obligation to reach a final decision due to its lingering inability to secure funding to employ an administrative hearing officer. The lack of an administrative hearing officer shall also not excuse the CSC from reaching a timely ruling on Mr. Camacho’s grievances,” the motion stated.
It also noted Deputy Attorney General Lillian Tenorio’s statements quoted in a Marianas Variety article dated Nov. 15, 2023.
Tenorio suggested that “the CSC shall not abdicate its responsibility to adjudicate employee grievances despite its financial predicament especially when the CSC has full membership required to conduct its business and hold a hearing.”
“CSC’s failure to issue a timely decision in this case violates Mr. Camacho’s due process and impermissibly delays Mr. Camcho’s right to appeal,” the motion said.
Grievances
Camacho has told the CSC that DPS retaliated against him for filing a grievance against the department.
He also alleges the following:
–DPS failed to issue his annual performance rating report in a timely manner, which affected his ability to be equally and fairly considered for the employment positions he applied to.
–The Office of the Attorney General improperly commandeered the formal grievance process by injecting itself in the preliminary stages of the grievance process.
–DPS hired and selected candidates ineligible for employment under certain examination announcements. In addition, DPS had relied on the faulty certification of those candidates by the Office of Personnel Management.
