COLUMBUS, OH- A fired police officer with the Columbus Police Department (CPD) claims that she was acting in self-defense when involved at a brawl while off duty at a TownHall bar.
According to reports, 34-year-old Amber Blackburn says that she should get her job back because she was defending herself after a fight at a Short North bar back in January. She said that she should be back on the force because fellow officers working a special duty detail at TownHall on the morning of January 26th failed to report the altercation accurately.
While she was not arrested or charged with a crime, she was let go from the police force. New CPD officers are on a probationary period for 12 months following their graduation, during which time the department can fire them for any which reason. Blackburn started the police academy in August 2023 and graduated in March 2024.
To help her get her job back, Blackburn hired attorney Sam Shamansky, who claims that CPD did not investigate or confirm the special duty officers' stories before firing Blackburn. If the department does not rehire her, Shamansky said Blackburn is considering a civil lawsuit.
The two CPD officers working at the bar that night described Blackburn's conduct as "erratic and uncooperative," saying that they had to guide her into a wall to "control her actions." The supervisors of the two officers wrote to his chain of command that the officers said Blackburn had to be physically restrained by another person inside the bar and was acting "erratic."
Both officers wrote that they witnessed Blackburn punching another woman as that woman walked away. Glenn McEntyre, assistant director at the Department of Public Safety, said the internal investigations are looking at whether Blackburn's actions were reported immediately as required. The incident happened in the early morning hours on January 26th, around 2:00 a.m., but the two officers didn't write their report until during their afternoon shift on January 26th.
McEntyre provided a copy of Civil Service Rule 11-D, which states that probationary officers can be fired during their probationary period with the decision being final.
Two videos from TownHall, provide by Blackburn, show a verbal confrontation inside the bar, escalating into an exchange of punches. An interior video angle does not show Blackburn interacting with the two special duty officers, who are not seen on the footage inside the bar during the four minutes of footage.
Blackburn can be seen exchanging words with another woman at a nearby table and Blackburn hitting the woman before being pulled away by a man in her group. Blackburn said the verbal confrontation began because the other bar patrons felt Blackburn's group was too close to their table.
Blackburn did admit to hitting one of the women, but said she did so in self-defense after being punched first. She said, "I'm allowed to defend myself." She said the other woman, who the video shows Blackburn hitting several times, had spat in her face as she was trying to leave the bar.
"Just because you become a sworn police officer, you don't give up your right to defend yourself. You don't get to become a spittoon," said Shamansky of the situation.
Blackburn said when she got outside the bar, she assumed the two special duty officers who were working there would take her information for a report because she had been assaulted and spit on, which could be charged as a felony under Ohio law. Instead, she said the officers dismissed her and refused to do anything.
Shamansky said he believes the officers may have been motivated to exaggerate or lie about what they saw because of animosity towards Nick Duty, Blackburn's ex-husband and a former CPD officer. Duty admitted in January to turning off his body camera during sexual encounters with women while he was on duty. He is now awaiting sentencing at a later date in U.S. District Court.
When asked to meet with Assistant Chief Nick Konves on January 27th, Blackburn said she believed it was because he needed to take a report. Instead, Konves "totally dismissed" her and would not allow her to explain herself, terminating her on the spot.
Records show that Konves recommended Blackburn's termination for conduct that brought disrespect to the department. He made the decision based on several reports provided to him through the chain of command from the special duty officers, one of whom reported it to a sergeant at the beginning of his next scheduled workday.
According to reports, 34-year-old Amber Blackburn says that she should get her job back because she was defending herself after a fight at a Short North bar back in January. She said that she should be back on the force because fellow officers working a special duty detail at TownHall on the morning of January 26th failed to report the altercation accurately.
While she was not arrested or charged with a crime, she was let go from the police force. New CPD officers are on a probationary period for 12 months following their graduation, during which time the department can fire them for any which reason. Blackburn started the police academy in August 2023 and graduated in March 2024.
To help her get her job back, Blackburn hired attorney Sam Shamansky, who claims that CPD did not investigate or confirm the special duty officers' stories before firing Blackburn. If the department does not rehire her, Shamansky said Blackburn is considering a civil lawsuit.
The two CPD officers working at the bar that night described Blackburn's conduct as "erratic and uncooperative," saying that they had to guide her into a wall to "control her actions." The supervisors of the two officers wrote to his chain of command that the officers said Blackburn had to be physically restrained by another person inside the bar and was acting "erratic."
Both officers wrote that they witnessed Blackburn punching another woman as that woman walked away. Glenn McEntyre, assistant director at the Department of Public Safety, said the internal investigations are looking at whether Blackburn's actions were reported immediately as required. The incident happened in the early morning hours on January 26th, around 2:00 a.m., but the two officers didn't write their report until during their afternoon shift on January 26th.
McEntyre provided a copy of Civil Service Rule 11-D, which states that probationary officers can be fired during their probationary period with the decision being final.
Two videos from TownHall, provide by Blackburn, show a verbal confrontation inside the bar, escalating into an exchange of punches. An interior video angle does not show Blackburn interacting with the two special duty officers, who are not seen on the footage inside the bar during the four minutes of footage.
Blackburn can be seen exchanging words with another woman at a nearby table and Blackburn hitting the woman before being pulled away by a man in her group. Blackburn said the verbal confrontation began because the other bar patrons felt Blackburn's group was too close to their table.
Blackburn did admit to hitting one of the women, but said she did so in self-defense after being punched first. She said, "I'm allowed to defend myself." She said the other woman, who the video shows Blackburn hitting several times, had spat in her face as she was trying to leave the bar.
"Just because you become a sworn police officer, you don't give up your right to defend yourself. You don't get to become a spittoon," said Shamansky of the situation.
Blackburn said when she got outside the bar, she assumed the two special duty officers who were working there would take her information for a report because she had been assaulted and spit on, which could be charged as a felony under Ohio law. Instead, she said the officers dismissed her and refused to do anything.
Shamansky said he believes the officers may have been motivated to exaggerate or lie about what they saw because of animosity towards Nick Duty, Blackburn's ex-husband and a former CPD officer. Duty admitted in January to turning off his body camera during sexual encounters with women while he was on duty. He is now awaiting sentencing at a later date in U.S. District Court.
When asked to meet with Assistant Chief Nick Konves on January 27th, Blackburn said she believed it was because he needed to take a report. Instead, Konves "totally dismissed" her and would not allow her to explain herself, terminating her on the spot.
Records show that Konves recommended Blackburn's termination for conduct that brought disrespect to the department. He made the decision based on several reports provided to him through the chain of command from the special duty officers, one of whom reported it to a sergeant at the beginning of his next scheduled workday.
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Comments
22 hours ago | Comment by: Rick
I'm sorry but I have no sympathy here. She should have either left before the brawl started, cooperated with the officers working the bar detail, and/or not been the aggressor when the other woman was trying to walk away. She was probationary and did not have the common sense to stay out of trouble. That combination would have resulted in her being terminated almost anywhere. When she finds another agency willing to hire her, hopefully she will be a little wiser concerning her off-duty conduct.