HUTCHINSON, Kan. — A Hutchinson police officer who was fired for the handling of a traffic stop involving a fellow officer will have his case heard before the Kansas Court of Appeals next month. Former HPD officer John Suda filed an appeal with the Kansas Courts after he lost his appeals before the city council and district court.
Suda and two other officers were fired after they tried to cover up an incident in which a female officer was spotted driving intoxicated with her child onboard. That officer, Anna Ruzhanovska, resigned from the force. Other officers were either suspended or disciplined.
Suda and the other officers tried to hide the facts in Ruzhanovska’s traffic stop by shutting off the cameras and then driving her to the police station in her own vehicle. Suda maintained during an arbitration hearing that he was not trying to hide the facts, but was trying to protect Ruzhanovska when he and another officer shut off their cameras.
Attorneys representing the local Fraternal Order of Police and attorneys representing the city will argue the case Jan. 11.
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