Nebraska Department of Correctional Services v. Hansen

Ervin Hansen, the defendant, appeals from a district court decision which reversed a finding by the State Personnel Board (board). The end result was termination of Hansen’s employment at the Nebraska State Penitentiary, a facility operated by the Department of Correctional Services (DCS), the plaintiff-appellee.

Hansen had worked at the penitentiary as a correctional officer for 10 years when, in the early morning hours of *234November 15, 1987, while on duty as a hospital officer, he was observed by a sergeant who believed that Hansen was asleep at his post. Hansen met with the sergeant at the…