FREMONT — Charges against former Clyde police officer Troy Keegan were dropped last week by Sandusky County Prosecutor Tom Stierwalt due to concerns over evidence.
Keegan’s employment status with the Clyde Police Department is still uncertain, though.
Keegan was placed on paid leave from the department in June and was fired by Clyde city manager Paul Fiser in October for allegedly using the police department’s fingerprinting machine for personal use to apply for another job.
Keegan was facing a felony and two misdemeanor charges in connection to the incident. The cost of the fingerprints was $54, which Clyde Police Chief Bruce Gower said Keegan should have paid for.
Keegan filed a grievance seeking to be reinstated to the Clyde Police Department. The grievance is slated to be heard by an arbitrator in February, according to Fiser.
“Mr. Keegan has contractual rights and so does the city,” Fiser said. “We have a grievance process in place, and we’re going through it now. We don’t have an answer on it yet.”
According to Fiser, Keegan’s employment was terminated not because of the criminal charges but because of a department policy violation, so a decision on his employment status will not be made until the arbitration process is completed.
