crime An Officer Punished, A Sergeant Demoted
Both Officers Protest Punishment, But Arbitrator Has Waited 16 Months to Rule Publisher’s Note: We had to edit this story for length; please read the expanded version at thegabber.com. Arbitration involving two Gulfport Police officers challenging disciplinary actions and a demotion over a March 2019 incident continues to drag on after a hearing more than a year ago. Gulfport officers Rob Burkhart and Cory Smith requested arbitration after the department disciplined them for their handling of a domestic incident involving two brothers on St. Patrick‘s Day, 2019. Gulfport Police Chief Robert Vincent demoted Burkhart from sergeant to police officer and suspended him without pay for 84 hours; Vincent also suspended Smith without pay for 24 hours. In the arbitration hearing, Vincent said he would have preferred to fire Burkhart. Both actions occurred after internal investigations into the incident. Through their counsel with the Fraternal Order of Police, both officers filed grievances challenging the department’s actions. Vincent said a mutually agreed upon arbitrator, Seminole attorney Kitty Grubb, con-
GULFPORT POLICE DEPARTMENT
By Mike Sunnucks
Officer Cory Smith says he notified the incoming shift of the situation.
ducted the arbitration hearing in October 2020. Grubb has not yet made a decision.
She declined to comment on the status of the case or reasons for the lengthy process.
Arbitration continued on page 16
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