Cop Fired After Helping Shot Officers

David Sedmak, a Rice University police officer, heard on his scanner, "Officer down, officer down!" As fast as he could, he responded to the call and learned that two Houston Police Department officers had been shot.

After aiding his fellow officers, possibly saving their lives, Mr. Sedmak was greeted with this message from his University:  you're fired.  Their reason: "dereliction of duty."

Specifically, the University reasoned, "Sedmak left his post when only two other officers were on duty and failed to notify his supervisor of his whereabouts for nearly an hour, which could have endangered the safety of our students and campus."  So, despite the fact that Mr. Sedmak was responding to officers who had been shot and the fact that they were in considerable danger, on those grounds his employment was terminated.

Understandingly, Mr. Sedmak was shocked.  However, he took the high road, saying, "My only concern on that day was to render aid to these two officers... Quite frankly, I couldn't believe that after being in law enforcement for nearly 17 years that I was being relieved of my duty for running an assist to an officer. There's been a lot of talk about me being a hero, and I just want to say personally that the real heroes here are these two officers and the job that they performed on that day,"

Mr. Sedmak

The college released this statement in response to inquiries:

"As a matter of policy, Rice University does not comment on personnel matters. However, out of respect for the Houston Police Department, we want to clarify that David Sedmak was terminated from the Rice University Police Department for dereliction of duty. Sedmak left his post when only two other officers were on duty and failed to notify his supervisor of his whereabouts for nearly an hour, which could have endangered the safety of our students and campus."

Kevin Lawrence, executive director of the Texas Municipal Police Association, stated, "You don't fire a guy for this unless he's a chronic disciplinary problem.  You call him in, you counsel him and you put him back out there (to work). If he's a good cop, he's a good employee. You use this as a training opportunity."

Twenty five officers came together in Houston Monday to show their support to Mr. Sedmak. "In this case, Officer Sedmak's reward was he was fired," said Ray Hunt, vice president of the Houston Police Officers Union.

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