A state appeals court has upheld the NYPD's 2006 dismissal of a cop who failed a drug test, despite his protests that he tested positive because his wife laced his meatballs with marijuana, reports the Daily News.
Commissioner Raymond Kelly fired the 22-year veteran detective, Anthony Chiofalo, after high levels of the drug were found in his hair samples. But Chiofalo has maintained it wasn't his fault.
Chiofalo's wife, Catherine, who puffs pot to alleviate back pain told investigators she added the secret ingredient to her husband's dinner so that he would be fired rather than risk getting killed on the job.
The Appellate Division rejected Chiofalo's appeal. Judges decided that the amount of marijuana in his system was not consistent with accidental or second-hand consumption.
Chiofalo claimed that the test was not authorized by the NYPD's collective bargaining agreement with his union. But according to the judge's decision, made public on Thursday, the court of appeals held that the Police Commissioner has the power to decide on the method of drug testing, and that choice was not subjective to collective bargaining.
This isn't the first time a cop has used a bizarre excuse for failing a drug test. In April 2009, NBC New York reported the case of an
NYPD veteran, Jon Goldin, who claimed he passively ingested cocaine while performing oral sex on his girlfriend. A Manhattan judge didn’t swallow Goldin’s argument, or his friend's testimonies that he led a "straight edge" lifestyle.
