Former RTD Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald terminated for cause, Colorado Attorney General’s office says

Former RTD Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald, who separated from the agency last week, was fired according to a Colorado licensing database.

CBS News Colorado reported on Sept. 20 that Fitzgerald “was no longer employed at the Regional Transportation District,” according to a memo from RTD CEO Debra Johnson that was sent out to all RTD employees.

But the agency refused to say if Fitzgerald had resigned or was fired and declined to share any information about what led to the separation. Johnson said last Friday that she would share her “plans for interim leadership” in the coming days. Nearly a week later, no new information has been provided about whether Fitzgerald was fired or voluntarily resigned.

On Thursday, Colorado’s Peace Officer Standards and Training database — which shows the employment and disciplinary status of Colorado law enforcement officers — showed that Fitzgerald had been “Terminated For Cause.” It’s unclear if the firing impacts Fitzgerald’s ability to serve in law enforcement in Colorado.

After the publication of this story, RTD responded to an open records request saying it had no records of termination or separation for Fitzgerald.

An RTD spokeswoman also responded to a request for comment Thursday saying RTD “adheres to the Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Board regulations and its reporting requirements,” but did not otherwise comment on Fitzgerald’s termination.

CBS News Colorado also contacted the Attorney General’s office seeking more information about the termination notice.

Fitzgerald joined RTD as its police chief in 2022. But he had been on leave since July as an outside investigator looked into alleged “policy violations.”

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.