Fired APD cops fight to get jobs back

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Two APD officers fired because of their ties to an officer accused of killing his wife are fighting to get their jobs back.

Pete Dwyer and Russell Perea were both fired from the department for very different reasons although both men have at least one thing in common, their friendship with ex-cop Levi Chavez.

Chavez was charged with killing his wife, Tera, and staging her suicide.

The family of Tera Chavez claim Perea covered for Levi the night Tera was murdered.

In late August Perea was fired for violating standard operating procedures. But in February a hearing officer ruled Perea should get his job back as well as back pay and benefits.

On Wednesday Perea appeared before the city’s personnel board to see if February’s ruling would be approved but the board delayed voting because the chairman was not present.

Attorneys with the city were also at Wednesday’s hearing and said they felt the hearing officer who approved the ruling in favor of Perea should also be removed from the department.

Perea’s lawyer, Sam Bregman, says the city’s just holding a grudge, “They lost, they had plenty of time to provide all the evidence they wanted to. They didn’t provide one shred of evidence to suggest Russell Perea was not honest with the city,” Bregman said.

Perea's next hearing is scheduled for April.

At that same hearing the board also decided to uphold the termination of Dwyer who was fired for offensive posts he made on Twitter.

An attorney for the city says Dwyer’s Twitter posts included references to the Nazi flag, pistol whipping people and offensive comments about Muslims.

Dwyer's lawyer says he plans to appeal the firing in court, saying Dwyer's free speech was violated.

APD internal affairs is also looking into how a vehicle I.D. Number plate from a truck once owned by Dwyer, ended up on a truck reported stolen by Levi Chavez.

Prosecutors claim that truck was at the center of the murder because Tera was about to tell authorities Levi staged the theft for insurance money.