Oklahoma FOP Legal Defense Plan - Oklahoma FOP Attorney - Travis Vernier - Les Bennett - Texas FOP Attorney - Oklahoma Labor Council - Oklahoma Officer Involved Shooting

When your badge, certification, career, and reputation are on the line, experience matters.

Bennett Vernier, PLLC represents police officers, deputy sheriffs, state law enforcement officers, tribal officers, and firefighters throughout Oklahoma and Texas in administrative investigations, disciplinary proceedings, civil litigation, and employment disputes.

FOP & TMPA Legal Defense Representation

Bennett Vernier, PLLC proudly represents law enforcement officers through the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Legal Defense Plan and the Texas Municipal Police Association (TMPA). When you are a covered member facing an administrative investigation, disciplinary action, or legal exposure arising from your official duties, experienced counsel matters immediately.

We routinely represent officers under the FOP Legal Defense Plan and TMPA in matters involving:

  • Internal Affairs investigations

  • Use-of-force reviews

  • Critical incident response

  • Administrative discipline and termination

  • CLEET/TCOLE certification proceedings

  • Civil litigation arising from on-duty conduct

We understand the structure of the FOP Legal Defense Plan and TMPA, the coverage process, and the urgency required when a member requests representation. From the first notice of investigation, we act quickly to protect your procedural rights, guide you through interviews, and prepare a strategic defense.

Your career, certification, and reputation deserve experienced, trial-ready counsel.

Firefighter & IAFF Legal Defense

Firefighters face their own complex employment and disciplinary challenges. Our firm represents career and volunteer firefighters in:

  • Departmental investigations

  • Civil service disciplinary proceedings

  • Termination and demotion appeals

  • Collective bargaining disputes

  • Disability and pension matters

  • Workplace and retaliation claims

We understand the structure of municipal departments, civil service boards, and public employment protections under Oklahoma law.

Administrative, Civil & Employment Defense

Public safety professionals operate under intense scrutiny. Allegations can escalate quickly into administrative action, media exposure, criminal review, or civil litigation.

We provide strategic defense in:

  • Administrative hearings

  • Employment contract disputes

  • Pension and disability claims

  • Governmental investigations

  • Parallel civil litigation

Our approach is disciplined and trial-ready. We prepare every matter with the understanding that outcomes affect not just employment, but long-term reputation and retirement security.

Real-World Law Enforcement Insight

Effective defense of law enforcement officers requires more than textbook legal knowledge; it requires real-world understanding.

Unlike many law firms, our founding partner, Travis Vernier, brings first-hand experience with the realities of modern police work. We understand the operational pressures officers face, the complexity of use-of-force decisions, and the scrutiny that follows critical incidents.

Our attorneys are Certified Force Science® Analysts, providing specialized insight into human performance, perception, memory, reaction time, and decision-making under stress. This training allows us to analyze body-worn camera footage, officer reports, and investigative findings with a nuanced understanding of split-second judgment in rapidly evolving situations.

When an officer’s actions are questioned, context matters. Science matters. Preparation matters.

By combining real-world law enforcement knowledge with disciplined litigation strategy, we provide informed, aggressive defense for officers facing administrative investigations, civil litigation, and high-profile incidents.

We stand ready to defend those who serve our communities.

Union Contract Disputes & Collective Bargaining Enforcement

Public safety employment is governed not only by department policy, but by negotiated collective bargaining agreements. When those agreements are violated, strategic enforcement becomes essential.

Bennett Vernier represents police officers, firefighters, and unions in disputes arising under collective bargaining agreements, civil service rules, and established past practices.

We handle matters involving:

  • Collective bargaining agreement (CBA) interpretation disputes

  • Grievance arbitration

  • Unilateral changes in working conditions

  • Interference with negotiated rights

  • Discipline inconsistent with contract provisions

  • Past practice violations

  • Union representation disputes

  • Failure to follow promotional or seniority provision

When contractual rights or negotiated protections are ignored, decisive legal action can restore balance and protect both the individual officer and the integrity of the bargaining agreement.

Statewide Representation for First Responders

Based in Oklahoma City, Bennett Vernier represents police officers and firefighters throughout Oklahoma, including Edmond, Norman, Yukon, Moore, Tulsa, Broken Arrow, Lawton, Enid, Muskogee, and surrounding communities.

We understand the culture of public safety work — and the seriousness of defending those who serve.

While no legal outcome can ever be guaranteed, we are committed to providing relentless preparation, strategic advocacy, and disciplined courtroom representation when your career is at stake.

📞 If you are a police officer or firefighter facing investigation or discipline, call Bennett Vernier, PLLC at (405) 346-9800 to speak with experienced legal counsel.

24/7 Critical Incident Hotline

If you are a first responder involved in a critical incident, do not delay. Immediate legal guidance is critical.

📞 Call our 24/7 Critical Incident Hotline at (405) 500-2089.

Oklahoma Police & Firefighter Legal Defense Attorneys

  • If you’ve been involved in a shooting, the first thing you should do is get in touch with an FOP attorney. You can call our critical incident hotline 24/7, 365 days a year, for assistance. We serve police clients across Oklahoma.

    After contacting an FOP attorney, here are few key things we think our police clients should know:

    • EXERCISE YOUR RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT

      • Do not discuss your case with anyone. Remember the saying, “Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.” Should inquiries be made, refer them immediately to your attorney.

      • Social Media: It is also very likely investigators and others (like the media) will comb through your online presence, looking for posts, pictures, videos, and other information to use against you. Be extremely careful what you post on social media. We recommend you avoid social media while under investigation. Deactivate your pages for now. But, whether you choose to deactivate your pages or not, discuss nothing, no matter how innocent the inquiries may seem.

      • Peer-Support: We support the push to provide officers with access to mental health services. However, while criminal or internal investigations are underway, we recommend utilizing these agency-based programs very cautiously. It is true that what is discussed during a peer-support session is shielded by state law; however, we have seen officers get themselves into legal jams while participating in these programs. This is not to attack peer-support programs. Again, we support the concept, but your peer-support team is not your legal team. As well-meaning as your peer-support team members may be, far too often, we have seen peer-support team members provide terrible legal advice, or worse, coax officers into taking certain actions that have caused devastating legal problems. Therefore, our advice is to “Trust, but verify.” Please do not participate in any peer-support activity until you talk to your attorney first.

    • DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING UNTIL YOU’VE SPOKE TO YOUR ATTORNEY

      • Do not sign or return any document or paper you may receive, unless you’ve spoken to your attorney. Immediately forward all correspondence to your attorney for our review. Your attorney will determine the proper response, if one is needed. Police officers, even well-meaning ones, are not your attorneys and often have no idea the legal impact that signing a document may have on your situation. Officer-involved shootings are complex. Even if you are criminally cleared of charges, you may still lose your job or face a massive lawsuit because of a poorly worded document or notice you signed.

  • As a public employee, it is essential to have a working knowledge of your Garrity rights.

    Garrity requires that before a government agency questioning one of its employees can discipline that employee for refusing to answer the questions asked, the government must:

    1. Order the employee to answer the questions under threat of disciplinary action.

    2. Ask questions that are directly and narrowly related to the employee's duties or fitness for duty.

    3. Advise the employee that answers to the questions will not be used against the employee in criminal proceedings.

    If the employee then refuses to answer the appropriate questions, the employee may be disciplined for insubordination. Since the employee's answers cannot be used against them in subsequent criminal proceedings, discipline for refusing to answer proper questions is permissible, even if the employee is subject to an active criminal case.

    Last, Garrity only protects truthful statements. If the government employee lies during the administrative interview, the employee's false statements may be used against them in criminal proceedings.

  • Weingarten rights guarantees that a unionized employee has the right to have a union representative present during an investigative interview. Note, however, that your employer does not need to inform an you that you are entitled to union representation. The union representative can be a union member or an attorney on behalf of the union.

  • The Oklahoma Fire and Police Arbitration Act ("FPAA") governs the relationship between municipalities and unionized firefighters, police officers, and their bargaining agents (unions). The FPAA affords police and firefighters key rights concerning wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment.

    While the FPAA prohibits unionized firefighters and police officers from striking, the act also makes it against the law for agency or municipal leaders to fail to bargain in good faith. The statute's language is sometimes murky and contains numerous complex legal concepts. If you’re interested, we’ve written a whole article on the FPAA because it’s that important to the rights of Oklahoma’s first responders.

  • Many departments afford police and firefighters various rights during internal investigations. These rights supplement or enhance any constitutional or statutory rights. Sometimes the rights are incorporated into the collective bargaining agreement (“contract”) between the union and agency. Other times, the rights are contained in the agency’s policies. In some cases, the rights are contained in both the contract and the department’s rules. The rights contained in these documents are specific to each agency and require careful review.

AREAS OF REPRESENATION

  • Officer Involved Shootings

  • In-custody Deaths

  • Fatal Collisions

  • Excessive Force

  • Administrative Investigations

  • Collective Bargaining

  • Workplace Discrimination

  • Unjust Discipline

  • Grievance & Arbitration

  • CLEET Licensure

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