An ex-Springfield Police employee says she feels vindicated by a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling.
It states that the City of Springfield’s attempt to have Thelma Barone sign away her right to criticize the city, departments, or employees was unconstitutional.
In 2015, Barone said at a City Club event that she’d heard complaints about racial profiling. She was fired by the city after refusing to sign what’s called a “last chance agreement.”
In 2017, a district court ruled that the agreement would not have limited Barone’s speech. The Ninth Circuit Court has now reversed that decision.
“I just feel really happy about this ruling, and I’m happy be an American," Barone tells KLCC.
"And the beauty of being an American, is you know, the freedom I learned to have…(laughs)that I found in this country.”
A City of Springfield spokesperson declined comment as the case is still pending. A federal district judge must now determine if there’s liability on the city’s part.
Copyright 2018, KLCC.
