Injunction Hearing Underway For Fired Fort Worth Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - As former Fort Worth Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald continues the fight to get his job back, attorneys are in court today at an injunction hearing.
Attorneys representing Fitzgerald tell CBS 11 News, the hearing is for a judge to decide whether the City of Fort Worth can legally name a permanent police chief while Fitzgerald's legal fight plays out in court.
In addition to Fitzgerald, Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price, Interim Police Chief Ed Kraus and City Manager David Cooke are all at the hearing and expected to testify.
Fort Worth mayor, city mgr, police chief, all waiting outside a Dallas courtroom this morning.
— Jason Allen (@CBS11JasonAllen) November 18, 2019
They're expected to testify as former Chief Joel Fitzgerald is trying to prevent the city from permanently having someone fill his former position pic.twitter.com/6GVckaEIvE
In a whistleblower lawsuit Fitzgerald claimed he was fired because he started investigating corruption within city hall and had planned to meet with FBI investigators over possible access violations to the Criminal Justice Information System.
Officials with the city say Fitzgerald was fired because he lacked good judgement, and they had concerns about his leadership. Many say the final straw for leaders came after Fitzgerald had a heated confrontation with the state union's president while attending the Top Cop Awards in Washington, D.C.
The injunction hearing is expected to last at least two days.