Attorney Eric Atstupenas presents an updated look at employment implications of the First Amendment. This seminar explores the First Amendment implications of speech by law enforcement personnel and the legal standards guiding discipline in response to that speech. Participants will examine landmark U.S. Supreme Court rulings, circuit court decisions, and recent litigation involving officers disciplined for speech or whistleblower activity. Topics include:
- Emerging issues in workplace speech, employee discipline, and religious expression
- The constitutional framework of protected vs. unprotected speech
- The “official duties” and “public concern” tests
- The Pickering balancing test and Mt. Healthy causation analysis
- Case studies including Noon & Skidmore v. City of Platte Woods, Hill v. Town of Mocksville, and others
- Application of Title VII and religious accommodation standards
Instructor: Attorney Eric Atstupenas – MCOPA General Counsel / DLG Consultant
Eric Atstupenas presently serves as the General Counsel for the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association. He serves as a member at large on the IACP Legal Officers Section board, a member of the IACP Committee on Human and Civil Rights, associate member of the New England Association of Chiefs of Police and Central Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association and serves on the Board of Directors for the Municipal Police Institute, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to providing training to law enforcement in Massachusetts. Eric is the author of several law enforcement training materials and has been published in the IACP’s Police Chief magazine. Eric has also worked extensively with Eric Daigle, Esq., the owner of Daigle Law Group, LLC, as a law enforcement consultant and trainer.
- Credit Hours: 1.5
- Our training experts recommend this course for all supervisor and command staff.
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