CINCINNATI — A Cincinnati Police Department captain who was fired amid investigations for violating department policies must be reinstated, according to a three-person arbitration panel.
Danita Pettis, who had been with CPD for 25 years, was fired in December 2024. At the time, neither Chief Teresa Theetge nor the city manager commented on what led to her termination. However, her attorney, Jason Matthews, said the termination was retaliation.
Matthews said Pettis, a Black woman, learned in 2024 of a document circulating among officers that alleged she was promoted because of affirmative action. She filed a complaint, which her attorney said turned into an internal investigation in which arbitrators said the captain who led the interview was "dismissive of and argumentative with Captain Pettis, hardly treating her with either dignity or respect."
The city assigned Cincinnati Fire Department Chief Frank McKinley to be a neutral hearing officer to recommend discipline. According to Pettis' attorneys, McKinley recommended an 11-day suspension, but instead, Pettis was fired.
According to her attorneys, Theetge wrote a letter to City Manager Sheryl Long saying she did not agree with the recommendation and saying Pettis should be fired, resulting in Long then firing Pettis.
Now, an arbitration panel has ordered the city to fully reinstate Pettis as captain, with full back pay and benefits.
"Right now, I'm feeling very happy, extremely elated to finally be vindicated ... I'm very excited to get back to work," Pettis said at a press conference.
Matthews said in a press conference that his job is not over, believing the city needs to take accountability for the number of investigations surrounding Pettis and the impact the investigations and her termination had on her.
WATCH: Pettis speaks for the first time publicly in over a year
We reached out to Long's office, which provided a statement from her saying she "relied on the facts from a CPD internal investigation of this incident and the recommendation of the Police Chief about the appropriate discipline" in firing Pettis.
Long's office also provided the memo from Theetge to Long, which said she was "disapproving" of McKinley's recommendations and noted she is "afforded the authority" to change the recommendation from suspension to termination.
Theetge claimed Pettis was described as "intimidating and unprofessional" in conversations with Internal Investigations personnel before going directly to the Human Resources office, where Theetge said employees reported they "had never had an employee of the city come to the HR office and behave the way Captain Pettis did."
The chief, who is now on administrative leave pending an investigation into her effectiveness, said Pettis "abused her rank and authority." She also claimed Pettis denied attempting to speak to the HR director and entered a false pay code to earn overtime that did not accurately reflect where she was and what she was doing.
"When reviewed as a whole, the unavoidable conclusion is that Captain Pettis cannot be trusted in her actions or her statements," Theetge wrote. "Termination is the only appropriate outcome."
Long said in her statement the city will "move forward in alignment with the arbitrators' decision."
Records show Pettis was involved in multiple investigations in the years leading to her termination. In 2023, an internal investigation looked into whether Pettis, who is also the former president of the Sentinel Police Association, made "derogatory comments." The Cincinnati Fraternal Order of Police announced Pettis was exonerated of the allegations after the investigation.
In October 2024, another officer who'd worked with Pettis sued her, the City of Cincinnati, and Theetge, alleging "unlawful discriminatory and retaliatory actions against Plaintiff based on race," claiming she made racially offensive statements about her fellow officer's interracial marriage and biracial children. The officer who filed the lawsuit also alleges Pettis threatened to harm her career and went to her home to intimidate her.
WCPO asked Pettis about her morale returning to work and she made it clear she intends to keep her focus on the work at hand.
"In terms of my morale, I mean, I'm nothing if not professional," Pettis said. "So, you know, the past is the past. But I got to move on in order to do my job. I have to move on in terms of my mental, in terms of my physical in order to be an effective leader."
Although the city has said they will follow the ruling, Matthews has indicated this isn't the end of the legal fight.
"We believe that the city needs to take accountability for the unwarranted investigations which were conducted, the unwarranted disciplinary actions which were taken against Capt. Pettis and the harm that these events have caused to Capt. Pettis' wellbeing and and her professional reputation," Matthews said.
When pressed about that comment, Matthews did not rule out a civil lawsuit.
"We do have some legal options based on some prior administrative complaints which were filed," Matthews said. "But I prefer not to discuss those at this time. And I would like to give the city the opportunity to come to the table."
Pettis and her legal team will coordinate with the city's solicitor on the logistics of her return to work; an exact date is not yet known.
