In the wake of Ben Roethlisberger's Georgia sex scandal, one of his Pennsylvania police companions is fighting to keep working with the Steelers quarterback. The other officer might be fighting to keep his job.
State Trooper Edward Joyner filed a union grievance against Harrisburg officials so he can keep working for Roethlisberger. State officials rescinded Joyner's right to moonlight for the quarterback April 19, two days before the National Football League gave Roethlisberger a suspension that could last six games.
No charges will be filed by Georgia officials against either Roethlisberger or members of his entourage. A college coed accused him of raping her March 5 in a restroom in a Milledgeville bar after a night of drinking to celebrate his birthday. Roethlisberger denied the accusation.
Coraopolis Borough Council on Wednesday heard in executive session the first round of evidence about Patrolman Anthony Barravecchio, whom Georgia students accused of leading Roethlisberger's 20-year-old accuser to the bathroom.
Barravecchio was not invited to attend, said borough solicitor Richard Start. He said council would not take immediate action "because I'm still in the process of reviewing the documents."
Barravecchio's attorney, Michael Santicola, predicted council will exonerate his client.
"I'm confident that Mr. Start will see the facts as they are presented," Santicola said. "Mr. Start and the council will reach the decision that no action should be taken."
The documents are four volumes of a criminal investigative report released by the Georgia Bureau of Investigations and Milledgeville police.
After digesting them, state police officials argued in a written order that Joyner violated a 2005 agreement by serving as Roethlisberger's bodyguard, which might have "demeaned the image of the department" and "exceeded the scope" of his application to work as an assistant who would communicate with fans, chauffeur the football star to games and carry out similar chores.
"Trooper Joyner is not permitted to engage in supplementary employment while the grievance is pending," state police spokeswoman Lt. Myra Taylor said in a prepared statement.
Joyner, a 16-year veteran at Washington County's Troop B, contended he wasn't a bodyguard during the pub crawl in Milledgeville and did nothing to demean the state police.
According to the report, Joyner's answers to Georgia investigators were "vague" and he acknowledged paying Roethlisberger's bar tab at the end of the night. Women as young as 19 reportedly were drinking with the quarterback and claimed the officers and the rest of Roethlisberger's entourage knew they weren't old enough to consume alcohol legally.
The women claimed Joyner blocked their path when they tried to retrieve their intoxicated friend from the restroom where Roethlisberger was alone with her.
Pennsylvania State Troopers Association President Bruce A. Edwards fired back with a written statement on behalf of Joyner, who has kept silent during the legal process.
"Our department has apparently forgotten that Trooper Joyner has rights," Edwards wrote. "Several weeks have passed and the commonwealth has failed to provide any information about their decision to our association, let alone any justification to show just cause for rescinding his supplemental employment. Trooper Joyner has an exemplary record serving the Pennsylvania State Police. We intend to defend his rights as a trooper vigorously."
An investigation by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration involving Barravecchio continues.
Since August 2008, Coraopolis has loaned Barravecchio to a federal narcotics task force targeting Pittsburgh International Airport. Some of his undercover work included buying drugs and is overseen by the DEA in Pittsburgh, according to Philadelphia DEA spokesman Bryan Doherty and the Milledgeville case files.
At issue is whether publicity surrounding the Roethlisberger saga compromised ongoing drug stings.
"DEA management continues to review these matters," Doherty told the Tribune-Review. "Management has not reached a conclusion."
