Ever feel like you don’t quite get it? Where something seems so simple, but maybe, just maybe, there’s something you’re missing? Like, in the case of the Waltham Police Contract where it says that a decision of an arbitrator will be “final and binding,” doesn’t that mean that it should be, well, final? Or, binding? Well, unfortunately the City seems to have different definitions for that word, as it continues to challenge the November 2012 decision of Arbitrator Michael Stutz overturning the fifteen day suspension of Officer Paul Tracey. It was a straightforward decision, the arbitrator overturned a suspension finding that the alleged victim was no believable. Couldn’t have been more run of the mill. Unfortunately, the City appealed in true “throw everything at the wall and see if something sticks” fashion.

Back on March 4, 2014, I blogged about how Superior Court Judge S. Jane Haggerty summarily upheld the decision, rejecting all of the City’s arguments (that blog entry is here).

Surprisingly, the City was not done, and appealed Judge Haggerty’s decision to the Appeals Court. Last week, in a summary decision a panel of Appeals Court justices upheld the Superior Court upholding the Arbitrator (you can read the decision here). Similar to the Superior Court, the Panel rejected all of the City’s myriad arguments, concluding “we discern no error in the Superior Court judge’s reasoned decision and conclusions of law in denying the city’s motion for summary judgement.”

The City could still ask the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to consider the case (the SJC could decline to do so). On behalf of the Waltham Police Union, Officer Tracey, the taxpayers of Waltham (who continue to foot the bill for the absurd appeals), myself, and good people everywhere who understand what “final and binding” means, here’s hoping the City decides to simply comply with the award instead.

Download theTracey appeals court decision