A parade of 11 witnesses testified at Bethlehem police officer Richard Hoffman's termination hearing before city council Feb 24. Perhaps they thought they were deciding the fate of a 10-year veteran involved in a drunk driving accident last August during Musikfest, but Hoffman's fate will be decided by an independent and neutral arbitrator, not a city council that can be subjected to public pressure.

Through Attorney Quintes Taglioli, Hoffman notified Bethlehem city solicitor Bill Leeson that he would not contest the city council hearing, choosing to keep his powder dry for the eventual binding arbitration.

Leeson acknowledged at the onset that the standard range of discipline for a DUI involving no injuries is a 5-20 day suspension. He argued, however, that aggravating factors warrant termination.

DUI Incident

What got Hoffman into this jam was an off-duty drunk driving accident Aug. 8, 2013, in the middle of Musikfest. He had been drinking that evening at the FOP, located next to Ripper's Pub. As many as 15 off-duty officers were celebrating an officer's birthday. Hoffman, engaged in "horseplay" with another officer, became agitated at being taken down by a brother officer who is both a marine and martial arts expert. Police separated the pair,

Hoffman's close friend on the force, Jon Desiderio, walked Hoffman to his car and saw no evidence of impairment. In fact, an internal affairs investigator who spoke to seven police officers at the FOP that evening testified that none of them believed that Hoffman was intoxicated.

Heading home on East Broad, Hoffman received a text message from a dispatcher with the FOP group. While glancing at her message, he thought he saw someone in the road in front of him. He swerved and rammed two parked cars.

Officer Michelle Dologite, who was on patrol, was waiting to enter Broad Street as Hoffman drove by. She said his speed was "a little bit higher than you'd expect to see," but could not say whether he was exceeding the 35 mph speed limit. She went to him to make sure he was OK from where he was trapped inside his vehicle. She noticed he did not slur his words, and told council it would be improper to administer a breathalyzer because of a possible head injury.

At the hospital, Hoffman consented to a blood test, which eventually came back at 0.16 BAC, twice the legal limit. Sgt. Ronald Burzynski, who ultimately filed DUI charges against Hoffman, noted that his eyes were bloodshot and glazed. But he added that Hoffman remained well-spoken.

Hoffman, who accepted complete responsibility for the accident and said he was at a "low point" in his life, was ultimately placed on ARD, a special program for first offenders. Charges are dismissed and expunged after a successful probationary period.

Philly Fracas

Craig Finnerty, who was chief at the time, was "shocked" to open Hoffman's personnel file to see a record of a 2005 incident at a bar in Philadelphia, which Hoffman was visiting with a wedding party. He got involved in an argument and shoving match with a Philadelphia police officer, during which Hoffman threatened to come back with 20 guys and get this Philly cop.

Philadelphia police locked him up and called Bethlehem, where a lieutenant had to come down and pick Hoffman up. Hoffman apologized, acknowledged that what he did was "very serious," and admitted he has a problem when he drinks too much and he had been drinking the hard stuff that day.

He was formally reprimanded and told that a repetition of this conduct would result in termination. He said he would seek help for drinking, and agreed to apologize in writing to the Philly police officer.

Revel Casino

In July 2013, one month before the DUI, Hoffman was with a group of Bethlehem police officers who were kicked out of a Revel's Casino restaurant for being too boisterous. One of these officers told council the restaurant even packed their food for them and there was no issue after they were asked to leave. He admitted they were loud.

This matter was investigated. There was no incident report at the casino, and the officers on duty at the casino that day say the Bethlehem group was a little too loud for a little too long.

The Bouncer

Chaz Patrick, the owner of Molly's Grille on the Southside, testified about a March 16 incident last year in which Hoffman was bounced from his bar. His bouncer testified about putting some wrestling hold on Hoffman and carting him off. According to Patrick, Hoffman threatened to cause him problems, and that made him concerned about his livelihood.

But he waited from March until August before making a complaint.

The bouncer said that 12 hours after Hoffman was ejected, Bethlehem police were on the scene for yet another fight at the bar. They told him that some of the moves he uses are inappropriate. He also mentioned a subsequent visit from the fire department for being over capacity. He admitted that the fire official was jovial and told him, "It's all good."

Patrick also conceded that many of his customers are Bethlehem police officers.

Bethlehem City Council member Karen Dolan told the bouncer that he was "quite heroic." Court records reveal that he was actually under house arrest for a second offense DUI at the time of his altercation with Officer Hoffman.

Clowning With Dispatch

Hoffman was also cited for improper use of the MDT on April 11, 2013. This is a mobile data terminal, which allows officers to text messages back and forth to dispatch and each other. As explained by Lt. Jeremy Alshouse, officers are expected to confine comments to official business. Profanity is obviously prohibited. but Alshouse acknowledged the MDT is sometimes used improperly, "even by myself back in the day."

Hoffman and a dispatcher essentially were clowning around with each other. He used some profanity, and occasionally disparaged the traffic department. He even said he was out of shape because he's been drinking too much.

Both Hoffman and the dispatcher were reprimanded.

Bad Search

In December 2010, Hoffman and a probationary officer arrested someone who was turned over to deputies for incarceration. Several days later, while in jail, corrections officers noticed that this inmate had a gun which was missed during the search.

Hoffman thought the probationary officer had conducted the search and the probationary officer thought Hoffman had done it.

They both were suspended for 10 days.

FOP view

Fraternity of Police President Wade Haupert reminded council, "This is a human being. No one in this room is without flaws."

Haupert has been an advocate for mandatory counseling after an officer is involved in a traumatic event, like a murder. Haupert has acknowledged police view voluntary counseling as a "sign of weakness."