Franklin sheriff demotes 2 jail supervisors, then files injunction to stop Teamsters fight

The Franklin County sheriff is asking a Tri-Cities judge to stop an arbitrator from weighing in on the demotion of two corrections officers.

Sheriff Jim Raymond is seeking an injunction in Superior Court to stop Teamsters Local 839 from taking a grievance to an independent arbitrator.

His petition for the injunction claims he followed the contract to the letter when he demoted two jail supervisors but kept their salaries the same.

While he says the supervisors didn’t follow safety procedures, the petition doesn’t give a reason for stripping them of their ranks and changing their duties.

It also stops short of directly tying the change in rank for the former corporal and sergeant to the deaths of four Franklin County inmates in eight months, but does say they were supervisors during three of the deaths.

This is the latest challenge in a series of battles between the sheriff and the union that have resulted in at least three unfair labor practice complaints against the county.

It’s unclear whether the two employees are the same two that Raymond placed on paid administrative leave while their “honesty is investigated,” according to a Herald story in April.

Russell Shjerven, the local union’s secretary-treasurer, told the Herald they believe the two were demoted because of their union involvement.

The deputies were the last two members of the contract bargaining team who still work in the jail, he said.

He also criticized Sheriff Raymond for appearing to blame the deputies for the recent series of deaths in the jail.

He noted the sheriff has made it clear that he is in charge of the jail, so he is the one who bears responsibility for the deaths.

The sheriff’s office and Teamsters have been tied up in at least one other legal battle, though they have settled on a contract after more than a year of negotiations.

2 officers demoted

The two employees at the center of the injunctions, Sgt. Scott Cram and Cpl. McKenzie Burgess, have worked at the jail for several years.

Cram started at the jail nearly 20 years ago, according to his LinkedIn profile, and Burgess began her career in 2016, according to a Franklin County sheriff’s Facebook post.

It’s unclear what prompted the problems, but the petition for the injunction said the sheriff started an internal investigation “regarding behavior of corrections deputies, including supervisors Cram and Burgess” in January 2022.

Cram also was the supervisor when Thomas D. Franklin was found collapsed in his cell. He was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center were he died days later.

Raymond has previously claimed union officials were in the jail at the time Franklin collapsed.

Union officials have said they did not see any emergency going on at the time.

According to court records, Raymond held disciplinary hearings for Burgess and Cram in May 2022, and then demoted them to corrections deputies.

The court records don’t say when the demotion took place, but said the two deputies were recorded propping open a “high-risk segregation” cell door with a garbage can while moving an inmate on July 4.

Teamsters grievance

While normally a demotion would require the sheriff to show that it was just and fair, the union contract isn’t triggered if the employees keep the same pay, according to court documents.

When Raymond demoted Burgess and Cram, he didn’t lower their pay.

Still, the Teamsters filed a grievance claiming the sheriff violated the contract by demoting them.

Then on Aug. 8, union officials said they would be taking the grievance to the the state Public Employment Relations Commission. The union officially asked the commission for arbitration on Aug. 30.

The agency has jurisdiction over public sector labor relations and collective bargaining in Washington state. It provides arbitrators and mediators to resolve disputes.

County officials believe they didn’t violate the contract provisions making it so there isn’t anything to arbitrate, according to the petition.

Having an arbitrator weigh in would cost the county time to prepare for and participate in an “uncalled for arbitration,” as well as attorneys fees for preparing and attending the arbitration, said the petition.

No hearing date is set on the injunction request.

This story was originally published September 7, 2022 at 12:57 PM.