An officer got his job back after saying he used CBD, not THC. The city wants him fired.
Lafayette Consolidated Government has filed an appeal to terminate a Lafayette Police officer who got his job back after he said he failed a drug test because he was using CBD supplements.
Bernard Anderson was fired in June for violating the city's illicit drug policy after a screening showed he tested positive for marijuana metabolite. He told Internal Affairs investigators he was taking a CBD supplement as a sleep aid and never ingested marijuana.
The Lafayette Fire and Police Civil Service Board voted 3-1 in December to give Anderson his job back with pay.
But the city appealed that decision in district court, arguing in a filing last month that the decision to overturn its termination of Anderson was "not made in good faith or for cause" and asked a judge to reverse the board's decision.
A date has not yet been set for a judge to hear arguments.
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Anderson was involved in an on-duty car accident on Dec 24, 2020, and, per department policy, had to take a drug test. The test came back positive for marijuana metabolite. Anderson retested and the marijuana metabolite was still there.
Because marijuana immediately begins to break down in the body, some drug labs choose to test for marijuana metabolite, which stays in the system longer and is specific to traditional marijuana, a doctor testified before the board.
CBD (Cannabidiol) is derived from hemp plants, which are the same species as marijuana but contain virtually none of the psychoactive compounds that get people high. To be legal in Louisiana, CBD must contain less than 0.3% of THC.
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During Anderson's December hearing before the civil service board, his attorney, Allyson Prejean, argued that because there is no specific policy for CBD and the test could not determine whether the positive test was attributed to CBD or marijuana, Anderson should get his job back.
Michael Corry, the attorney representing the police department and LCG, argued Anderson violated the city’s zero-tolerance drug policy when his test came back positive.
Contact Ashley White at adwhite@theadvertiser.com or on Twitter @AshleyyDi.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Lafayette wants to retire officer who said CBD caused failed drug test
