Clement Bermudes
DEPARTMENT of Public Safety Commissioner Clement R. Bermudes has resigned. In a memorandum to Gov. Arnold I. Palacios on Friday, Jan. 26, Bermudes stated: “At 2:45 p.m. today, Governor Palacios instructed me to submit my resignation. Effective 4:30 p.m. I hereby resign as DPS Commissioner.”
In a separate memorandum to “all department and agency heads,” the governor said: “Effective immediately the Acting Commissioner for the Department of Public Safety will be Ms. Kay Inos, Director of Administrative Service until further notice.”
Following his resignation Bermudes informed reporters that he would issue an official statement.
The then-Northern Marianas College’s dean of academic programs, Bermudes was appointed by the governor as acting DPS commissioner on March 6, 2023. His nomination was confirmed by the Senate on April 20, 2023.
Variety learned that Bermudes received a letter from the governor dated Dec. 22, 2023, instructing the then-DPS chief to reassign Police Sgt. Peter Camacho to the Marianas Regional Fusion Center or MRFC.
“This is to address the recent disciplinary and seemingly retaliatory actions against Sgt. Peter Camacho, which contravened my directives and continues to be an issue,” the governor told Bermudes.
“Despite my explicit instructions regarding Sgt. Camacho’s assignment at MRFC…, he was purposely issued an AWOL notice and subjected to unwarranted punitive measures. This inconsistency in following my direct instructions and the treatment of Sgt. Camacho is concerning and unacceptable,” Palacios added.
“To be clear, effective immediately, I am hereby ordering the reassignment of Sgt. Peter Camacho to the Marianas Regional Fusion Center…under the direct supervision of Chief Lawrence Camacho. Compliance with this order is mandatory and non-negotiable,” Palacios said.
Camacho has accused the Civil Service Commission of violating his due process rights by failing to notify him about its Dec. 5, 2023, special meeting, and depriving him of the opportunity to be heard on his grievances.
Camacho, through attorneys Robert T. Torres and Oliver Manglona, has filed an administrative appeal in Superior Court regarding the commission’s final decision that dismissed his grievances against DPS.
According to Camacho’s appeal, “Because the Commission’s deliberation of Sgt. Camacho’s grievances was held in secrecy and the record produced by the Commission does not contain the meeting minutes or records of the Commission’s deliberation, Sgt. Camacho is unaware of the basis supporting the Commission’s decision.”
His appeal stated that “the Commission’s failure to provide records and documents of its committee meetings, which involved Camacho’s grievances, violated the Open Government Act, which requires that committee minutes be noticed and open to the public.”
The appeal also stated that DPS violated Camacho’s substantive due process rights by “precluding him from applying for the merit-based salary increase in DPS’ Examination Announcement Nos. 20-017 and 20-025 when he is a top qualifying candidate under those announcements and is an active, permanent civil service employee in the Government.”
Specifically, DPS “selected ineligible and unqualified candidates for announcement Nos. 20-017 and 20-025 who did not meet the qualification requirements under those announcements and in doing so violated the open competitive selection policies of the Civil Service’s Personnel System Rules and Regulations,” the appeal stated.
It added that DPS retaliated against Camacho for filing a grievance against the department.
