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Pittsburgh Housing Authority security firm sues former emplyoee
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A Carnegie company has sued a constable who publicly questioned its handling of security in Pittsburgh Housing Authority communities.
Victory Security Agency wrote in the lawsuit that until May 1 it employed Constable Brian Van Dusen, of the Hill District. He worked under its contract to provide armed, off-duty constables to patrol seven authority developments.
On April 25, the complaint said, he submitted a report of his daily activities saying that he was at the authority's Northview Heights property, but another Victory employee said he was not. Victory then fired him, the complaint said.
In late May, Mr. Van Dusen showed to the Post-Gazette and to KDKA-TV electronic documents filed by other constables detailing daily activities, but apparently completed and sent in hours before the ends of their eight-hour shifts. He also shared text messages written to the authority shortly after his firing in which he alleged "over 35-50 instances of individuals lying" on activity reports and sign-in sheets.
Mr. Van Dusen's accusations spurred an ongoing authority investigation of the Victory contract.
Victory's complaint against Mr. Van Dusen, which was served this week, said that in possessing and revealing its activity reports, he misappropriated its trade secrets and property, and breached a duty of loyalty. It said that as a result, Victory has suffered unspecified monetary losses.
The authority pays $30.44 an hour for each constable, which is expected to total $1.23 million over the first year.
Attorneys for Victory and for Mr. Van Dusen could not be reached for comment.
First Published July 11, 2012 4:54 pm
