The City of Vernon has lost in its court attempts to uphold the firings of two firefighters who had sex on duty, activity caught on firehall surveillance cameras.
Brent Bond worked as a captain and Cara-Leigh Manahan was fire department a dispatcher. Both were subject to the city’s codes of ethics and conduct.
On March 25, 2018, Bond and Manahan were on shift and had sex in an employee’s office at the firehall.
“Neither Mr. Bond nor Ms. Manahan knew that the office they used was under video surveillance or that their sexual activity was recorded on video footage,” Justice Elizabeth McDonald said in a ruling released February 23.
The next day, city managers viewed the video footage and interviewed Bond and Manahan.
The judge said both lied to managers and neither admitted to the activity.
“They were not advised at the time that their sexual activity had been recorded,” McDonald said.
Bond and Manahan and the Vernon Firefighters’ Association, I.A.F.F. Local 1517 grieved the firings in arbitration and a panel found it excessive, suggesting instead “harsh discipline.”
The city was dissatisfied with that decision and asked for a reconsideration, ultimately leading to the city looking to B.C. Supreme Court for a decision.
McDonald said she declined to overturn the decision as she could not find the arbitration reconsideration unreasonable.
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