State trooper says bosses went too far

PHILADELPHIA (CN) — A state trooper who was asleep in the car when her live-in boyfriend, by whom she was pregnant, allegedly swiped stuff from a Radio Shack says her bosses ordered her to stop seeing him, and when she objected, "told her that if she did not resign she would be court martialed and lose all of her benefits."
In her federal complaint, Antwana Murphy claims that other state troopers "were in relationships with individuals who had criminal histories and were not terminated or disciplined."
Murphy says her bosses ordered her to stop seeing her boyfriend, who "had a criminal record stemming from a conviction when he was 18 years old."
She says she told her bosses that she had no knowledge of his "criminal past," and that she "was not implicated in the theft of the items from the Radio Shack," as she was asleep when it happened, and did not wake up until police stopped him after he allegedly took "several mp3 players without paying for them."
Murphy says she had lived with her boyfriend for three years, that they took care of each other's children, and were looking for a house to buy when this fiasco began.
She claims the Capt. David Young ordered her to end her relationship with her boyfriend, and that she objected and filed a grievance.
"The Commonwealth took the position that the order to plaintiff requiring her to terminate her relationship was not a disciplinary action, therefore, the matter was not subject to the grievance procedure," according to the complaint.
Murphy says she refused to end her relationship, and Lt. Gary Dance told her that failure to comply immediately would result in a court martial. She was then suspended for 30 days without pay, and filed a second grievance, the complaint states.
Some months later, she says, Cpl. James Hein gave her an ultimatum: Resign or be court martialed and lose your benefits.
Fearful of losing her benefits while pregnant, Murphy says, she resigned.
She sued Young, Dance and Hein, alleging constitutional violations and constructive firing. She seeks more than $150,000 in damages.
She is represented by Kenneth Robinson.

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