In re Bloomfield

• Decision Date: 28 May 2021
• Docket Number: DOCKET NO. A-1405-19
• Parties: IN THE MATTER OF CLINTON BLOOMFIELD, CITY OF NEWARK.
• Court: New Jersey Superior Court — Appellate Division

IN THE MATTER OF CLINTON BLOOMFIELD, CITY OF NEWARK.

DOCKET NO. A-1405-19

SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY APPELLATE DIVISION

Submitted April 28, 2021

May 28, 2021

NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION

This opinion shall not "constitute precedent or be binding upon any court." Although it is posted on the internet, this opinion is binding only on the parties in the case and its use in other cases is limited. R. 1:36-3.

Before Judges Vernoia and Enright.

On appeal from the New Jersey Civil Service Commission, Docket No. 2018-2466.

Fusco & Macaluso Partners, LLC, attorneys for appellant Clinton Bloomfield (Giovanna Giampa, on the brief).

Chasan Lamparello Mallon & Cappuzzo, PC, attorneys for respondent City of Newark (Cheyne R. Scott, of counsel and on the brief; Cindy Nan Vogelman, on the brief).

Gurbir S. Grewal, Attorney General, attorney for respondent Civil Service Commission (Debra A. Allen, Deputy Attorney General, on the statement in lieu of brief).

PER CURIAM

Petitioner Clinton Bloomfield appeals from an October 24, 2017 Civil Service Commission final agency decision upholding his removal from his conditional employment as a police officer with respondent City of Newark, Department of Public Safety, based on disciplinary charges related to petitioner's failure to appear for, and unavailability to appear for, required assignments and work shifts because of his religious beliefs. Petitioner contends we should reverse the Commission's determination because: (1) respondent violated the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), N.J.S.A. 10:5-1 to -50, by failing to offer petitioner reasonable accommodations to allow him to observe his sincerely held religious beliefs; (2) the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) upheld petitioner's removal under an incorrect legal standard; and (3) the Commission's determination is arbitrary, capricious, and unreasonable because it is not supported by substantial credible evidence. Unconvinced, we affirm.

I.

Respondent conditionally hired petitioner as a Newark police officer on or about July 31, 2017. Petitioner's employment was contingent upon his successful completion of training at the New Jersey State Police Academy (academy). He testified he practices Judaism and is a member of The Church ofGod and Saints of Christ. The tenets of his religion do not permit him to work on the Sabbath—sundown on Friday nights to sundown on Saturday nights.

At all times pertinent to this appeal, the City of Newark and the Fraternal Order of Police, Newark Lodge No. 12 (FOP) were parties to a collective negotiations agreement (CNA), which governed the terms and conditions of employment for Newark police officers and prospective officers, including petitioner.¹ The CNA mandates a "4/2 schedule" for officers, meaning officers are required to work four days on and two days off each week, "which is not limited to just having Monday through Friday schedules or weekends off." The morning shifts for "[t]he 4/2 schedules . . . can range from 7:00 [a.m.] to 3:00 [p.m.], [or] 8:00 [a.m.] to 4:00 [p.m.]"; the afternoon schedules range "from 3:00 [p.m.] to 11:00 [p.m.] or 4:00 [p.m.] to 12:00 [a.m.]"; and "the first shifts . . . would be 11:00 [p.m.] until 7:00 [a.m.] or 12:00 [a.m.] until 8:00 [a.m.]"

Lieutenant James Byrd of the Newark Police Department (department) is a twenty-six-year veteran of the department and is assigned as the Executive Officer and Associate Director of the Essex County Police Academy. Hetestified that approximately twenty to thirty officers are assigned on each of the department's shifts. He also testified "each of those shifts [would absolutely] require [an officer] to work on a Friday night or a Saturday before sunset." He explained that when the department needs to fill a shift or does not have enough officers on a given shift and "no one volunteers" to work, the department chooses officers to work "mandatory . . . overtime."

The CNA also includes a "traditional" seniority system amongst officers, which, among other things, governs the department's grant of officers' requests to use vacation days. The CNA provides, "Vacation shall be chosen by all police officers . . . in order of seniority in rank of their unit," and "each employee shall be entitled to designate up to five . . . vacation days as single[-]use vacation days[,] which shall be taken within that calendar year with the approval of the Commanding Officer."

Prior to the commencement of his training at the academy, petitioner signed an "Acknowledgment of Work Schedule" form and a "Statement of Understanding." By executing the "Acknowledgment of Work Schedule," petitioner recognized and agreed his duties as a police officer required his availability to work on all "days, afternoons, nights, weekends[,] and/or holidays as required by" respondent; and by executing the "Statement of Understanding,"petitioner confirmed his understanding of respondent's employment policies, including its training and graduation requirements for officers.

Petitioner first requested an accommodation based on his religious beliefs in late November or early December 2016, prior to his conditional hire by respondent. Petitioner requested that the Commission allow him to reschedule his Entry Level Law Enforcement Exam—originally scheduled on a Saturday—because he was not "able to participate in Saturday testing for religious reasons." The Commission requested a letter from petitioner's "rabbi or other official from [his] temple verifying [his] request for non-Saturday testing." Petitioner provided the letter, and the Commission granted his request.²

Petitioner next requested an accommodation based on his religious beliefs in response to an order from respondent directing "all . . . recruits [to] respond to Atlantic Uniform [(AU)] . . . either on Saturday," October 21, 2017, "or . . . Saturday," October 28, 2017, "between" 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Petitioner testified he was unable to attend the ordered October 21 fitting because it conflicted with religious services at his church, which he attends each Saturdayfrom "10:00 or 11:00 [a.m.]" until "the sun sets."³ Petitioner explained he went to AU the next day and the owner informed him if he returned the following Saturday, the owner would ensure he was the first one fitted, and "it would only take five minutes." Petitioner arrived on Saturday, October 28, at approximately 9 a.m., and was fitted before attending services.⁴

Petitioner first requested an accommodation based on his religious beliefs from respondent in early December 2017, in response to a directive ordering all recruits to attend mandatory academy graduation training on Saturday, December 9, from 6:45 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. On December 3, petitioner sent an Administrative Submission to Captain Donald M. Robertella, Commander of the Police Training Division, acknowledging the training was "deemed mandatory" but "request[ing]" to be "excuse[d]" from the training because he was unable to work on the Sabbath due to his religious practice. Petitioner sent a second Administrative Submission to Robertella that day "request[ing]" to be excusedfrom work from January 4 through January 10, 2018, because working on those dates would conflict with his "annual religious observation" of the "Holy Convocation."

In addition to his Administrative Submissions, petitioner also sent Robertella: (1) a letter dated June 28, 2017 from Elder Clement Bloomfield—the pastor of petitioner's church—confirming petitioner's religion did not permit him to work "from [sunset] on Friday until [sunset] on Saturday"; and (2) a December 2017 letter from pastor Bloomfield stating petitioner's religious beliefs "required" him to be "actively involved in full worship" in observance of the "Holy Convocation" from January 4 to January 10, 2018, and he was not permitted "to work . . . during these days."⁵ Although petitioner did not inform respondent at this time, petitioner later testified he was also unvailable to work during Passover—"[a]round April 13 . . . to April 20"—but that he would "just take it as vacation."

On December 7, 2017, petitioner emailed Robertella confirming petitioner "underst[ood] . . . the meeting on [December 9, 2017 was] deemed mandatory," and reiterating that he would "not be able to attend" due to his "religiouspractice." On December 8, 2017, Robertella denied petitioner's requests, advising petitioner via email:

We have made every effort to accommodate your request, [but] unfortunately we cannot excuse you.

As a [r]ecruit, you must complete ALL mandatory training to graduate from the [a]cademy. Mandatory training includes the meeting on Saturday, December 9, 2017.

When you accepted employment with the Newark Police Division, you acknowledged in writing . . . that you understood and accepted that as a Newark [p]olice [o]fficer you are required to be available for a [twenty-four-]hour [seven] day a week work schedule and that your work schedule will include, "working days, afternoons, nights, weekends, and/or holidays as required by [respondent]." You signed the Acknowledgement of Work Schedule on May 25, 2017[,] and a copy was made a part of your Candidate Investigation File.

At the time that you signed the Acknowledgement of Work Schedule, you failed to notify the Newark Police Candidate Investigation [p]ersonnel, the Newark Police Division [t]raining [s]taff, and the . . . [a]cademy of your request for excusal from duty. Moreover, you participated in the . . . [a]cademy each Friday from August 4 through to December 1 and were released from duty after sundown on Fridays on many occasions.

[Respondent] has a duty to protect the safety and wellbeing of the public [twenty-four] hours a day [seven] days a week.

In his reply to Robertella's email, petitioner stated that if he was not granted the accommodations, he did "not see [him]self having a future with" respondent.

Petitioner did not attend the mandatory graduation training on December 9,...