Bedminster Officer Files Lawsuit Against Township Claiming Retailiation

A Bedminster Police Officer, who is fighting for his job, has filed a lawsuit against the township claiming he was retaliated against for blowing the whistle on a fellow officer.

Kyle Pirog, a 17-year veteran at the Bedminster Township Police Department, filed a civil suit in Morris County alleging the township police department violated the Conscientious Employee Protection Act in its retaliatory actions against him.

The suit could not be filed in Somerset County due to a conflict of interest, where a judge may have to serve as a witness.

Pirog filed the whistleblower claim in 2011 alleging Officer John Dapkins had lied under oath to a judge to obtain a search warrant. He also pointed out that a police report made by Dapkins was altered and not marked as being changed from the original. Pirog also alleges Dapkins strip searched a juvenile.

When his superiors failed to act on this, Pirog went to the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office and was subsequently demoted as a result by his department.

Pirog’s attorney noted a list of retaliatory actions made by the department including installing a GPS unit on his car to track his movements, being passed over for a promotion and having his shift schedule changed.

“He is in law school and (the police department) changed his schedule to prohibit him from attending classes,” said Pirog’s attorney Claudia Reis, of Lenzo & Reis of Morristown. “Even though they had an agreement in place between the department and local union that they wouldn’t change the schedule without the officer’s consent.”

Pirog filed the lawsuit after things came to head when the department suspended him indefinitely without pay on Aug. 18, following an Internal Affairs investigation.

The IA alleges his suspension was due to his performance of duty and neglect of duty, such as sitting idle at parks or on highways without issuing tickets.

Reis claims Pirog was sitting idle at parks for squad meetings with other officers and he can’t issue a ticket if drivers are not violating any laws.

“This really is a witch hunt against somebody who dared to speak out against a police officer who is violating civil rights,” Reis said.

Currently the suit is in a discovery period, where documentation and information is exchanged between both parties.