A New York City health assistant technician served with disciplinary charges alleging he engaged in off-duty misconduct

Julia H. Lee, a New York City Administrative Law Judge [ALJ] with the New York City Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings [OATH] recommended the termination of the Respondent, finding that the Employer had established that Respondent violated its rules by engaging in off-duty misconduct that led to his arrest and conviction for unlawful surveillance in the second degree. 

Respondent was arrested in and charged with unlawful surveillance in the second degree for recording a sexual encounter without consent. At the time of his arrest, Respondent was working as a health assistant technician [HAT]. After his arrest, Respondent was suspended for 30 days and reassigned as a telecommunications associate where his job duties included maintaining cellphones. In May 2023, Respondent had pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful surveillance in the second degree. 

While the Respondent did not dispute that his conviction had a nexus to his duties as an EMT, he contended that there was no nexus between his conviction and his current duties as a telecommunications associate. 

Noting that Respondent had transfer to his current position as a result of his arrest which prevented him from continuing his work as a HAT, the ALJ found that there was a nexus between Respondent’s conviction for unlawful surveillance and his duties as an EMT and as a HAT, both of which involve private medical procedures and confidential employee health information. 

The ALJ further noted that the crime to which respondent pleaded guilty involved the surreptitious recording of a woman during sexual activity, an act evincing moral turpitude and a violation of the Department’s regulations and code of conduct. 

The ALJ recommended the Appointing Authority terminate Respondent. 

Click HERE to access Judge Lee's decision and recommendation posted on the Internet.

The Commissioner of Education declined to consider Petitioner's application to remove the president and member of a Board of Education for lack of jurisdiction

The Petitioner in this appeal to the New York State Commissioner of Education sought to have the Commissioner remove the president and member of a Board of Education [Respondent] based on Respondent's alleged violation of the Open Meetings Law.

Citing Appeal of Flippen, 57 Ed Dept Rep, Decision No. 17,296 and other decisions of the Commissioner of Education, the Commissioner observed that New York State's Public Officers Law §107 vests exclusive jurisdiction over adjudication alleged violations of the Open Meetings Law in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, and concluded that she lacked jurisdiction to address the basis for Petitioner’s application.

In addition, the Commissioner's decision noted that Petitioner’s application was "untimely", explaining that "An appeal to the Commissioner must be commenced within 30 days from the decision or act complained of, unless any such delay is excused by the Commissioner for good cause shown." The Commissioner opined that this 30-day timeframe also applies to "a removal application pursuant to Education Law §306", noting Petitioner did not serve his application until more than two months after the alleged violation of the Open Meetings Law had occurred.

The Commissioner also commented that "Petitioner did not, as required, set forth good cause for the delay in [submitting] the petition". Accordingly, the Commissioner concluded that Petitioner's application must also be dismissed as untimely.

Click HERE to access the Commissioner's decision posted on the Internet.

The New York State Workers' Compensation Board webinar scheduled

The New York State Workers' Compensation Board has scheduled its next monthly webinar for employers and human resources (HR) representatives to be held on Tuesday, March 17, 2026.

The Board’s Office of the Advocate for Business will present on the basics of the workers’ compensation system, including insurance types, coverage requirements, and employers’ obligations under the law.

Each one-hour presentation will also cover:

• who needs coverage and who does not need coverage,
• how and when to report an injury or illness,
• considerations when hiring independent contractors, laborers, and domestic workers,
• lowering premiums, and
• penalties and where to go for assistance with them

All these are topics business owners and other employers, as well as their HR staff, should know about! The sessions are free and there will be time at the end for questions.

Register here

Tuesday, March 17, 2026 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

More information and contacts:

Visit the Advocate for Business section of the Board’s website for additional resources. You can also call the Office of the Advocate for Business at (518) 486-3331 or email advocatebusiness@wcb.ny.gov.

Having trouble? If you are having trouble registering for or attending any of these webinars, check out these Webinar FAQs.

A 50-day suspension without pay recommended as the penalty to be imposed on a correction officer found guilty of possessing a personal cell phone while on duty

OATH Administrative Law Judge [ALJ] Seon Jeong Lee found the Respondent in this administrative disciplinary action guilty of charges alleging that she had submitted a false or misleading report by stating that she had secured her cell phone prior to entering the correction facility and omitting any reference to having the cell phone with her inside the correction facility. 

Judge Lee credited the testimony of Respondent’s fellow correction officers, which was supported by their contemporaneous notes and reports, in finding that Respondent entered a department facility while in possession of her personal cell phone. 

Although the Appointing Authority sought Respondent's termination for the proved charges, the ALJ found this penalty to be excessive, citing the principle of progressive discipline and mitigating factors such as the speed with which Respondent left the facility and secured her phone on the bus after realizing it was on her person and before the start of a housing search operation. 

Additionally, the ALJ noted that although this was Respondent’s second offense related to making a dishonest statement, Respondent had served the Department for eight years, the underlying incident did not cause injury or risk to others, and a penalty short of termination could deter against similar misconduct in the future. 

Accordingly, the ALJ recommended the Employer impose a 10-day suspension without pay for the unauthorized possession of a cell phone and a 40-day suspension without pay for the false or misleading report.

Click HERE to access the ALJ's decision and recommended penalty posted on the Internet.

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NYPPL's A Reasonable Disciplinary Penalty Under the Circumstances is a 442-page e-book focusing on determining an appropriate disciplinary penalty to be imposed on an employee in instances where the employee has been found guilty of misconduct or incompetence.

Read a FREE excerpt (requires Adobe Reader)

Selected items posted on the Internet during the week ending February 27, 2026

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