MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The state's firing of an emergency management official who was absent in the wake of the Minneapolis bridge collapse was justified, an arbitrator ruled.

Sonia Morphew Pitt "abused the latitude accorded to her" when she stayed on the East Coast for nearly two weeks after the Aug. 1 collapse, arbitrator Christine Ver Ploeg wrote.
Pitt was fired in November for what the state said was unprofessional conduct, including unauthorized expenses and travel.

She appealed, arguing that MnDOT misconstrued its own policies and that supervisors had approved her travel. Pitt also argued that she was able to carry out her duties immediately after the collapse by phone and e-mail.

A legislative audit found that Pitt improperly billed the state for at least $26,000 in unauthorized expenses and improper pay. The arbitrator ruled that Pitt deserved the benefit of the doubt for some travel expenses, but clearly misused her state-issued cell phone for personal calls.

And Ver Ploeg rejected the idea that Pitt's physical location was unimportant, citing reports of confusion and communication gaps between the bridge collapse site and a command center.

"Just because Ms. Pitt was able to do portions of her job remotely does not mean that it made no difference where she was," Ver Ploeg wrote.

Pitt's attorney, John Fabian, didn't immediately return a phone message from The Associated Press.

Patricia Anderson, the state's Employee Relations commissioner, issued a statement saying the decision "affirms our position that serious misconduct cannot be tolerated in the state's workforce."

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