Department of Corrections officers' union lawsuit dismissed

A lawsuit filed in June by the Missouri Corrections Officers Association alleging the Missouri Department of Corrections had denied union access to new employees has been voluntarily dismissed.

The case had been scheduled for a status hearing this week before Cole County Judge Jon Beetem.

Lawyers representing the corrections officers filed their motion without prejudice, court documents show. Legally, "without prejudice" means those who filed the case can bring it back to try again. Each side will also bear their own legal costs under this agreement.

Neither the attorneys representing the corrections officers nor representatives for the corrections officers could be reached for comment.

Officials with the Missouri Attorney General's Office, which represented the DOC in this case, also declined to comment about the case.

The main contention of the suit was the claim by the corrections officers association that DOC had denied their representatives access to DOC training classes to speak to new employees in the bargaining unit represented by the association.

The association claimed DOC and OA had violated the Missouri Constitution, which allows for bargaining in good faith.