Fired on a false statement?

My brother was fired on Oct 31 for theft of company property. Pictures were taken at his house with the stolen property the Oct 28. My brother came clean and said he got the stuff that same weekend the pictures were taken. He was having a yardsale. Nov 1 I went to my boss and told him that I did not know anything about it and he said as long as there is no evidence then you are fine. Nov 9 my brother and his wife were called to go to the Sheriff's Office. The investigator showed my brother a statement from an employee that just started there. The statement stated that my brother told him that his wife made a list of stuff to take and he would get it. The investigator asked about me and my brother said he acted alone. He was arrested and let his wife go. Nov 14 I was fired because the same employee came forward again and stated that I would let him on property while I worked security. My brother's wife was fired the next day. I believe the boss coached those statements.Fired on a false statement?
I think they had grounds to terminate you. You violated a company policy.





That's all the grounds they need.Fired on a false statement?
Did you sign a contract that says you can not be fired for any cause? Most employees are ';at-will'; employees. This means that they can be fired for ANY reason except discriminatory reasons (racial,pregnant, etc). You might be able to go through the formal complaint process through your former job.





Also check into exactly what the other employee said or wrote. You might beable to bring a defamation suit. Defamation is a tort committed against the plaintiffs character or reputation by tanother persons false statements intentionally or negligently published (orally or in writing) to a 3rd person which statements hold the plaintiff up to ridicule, contempt, hatred, shame, or disgrace. This sounds like it would fit your situation. You would just have to see if a defamations suit is applicable when the false statement is made to an officer during their investigation. For ex. in NY a defamatory statement is qualifyable privileged (in other words the statement is allowed). BUT this privilege can if lost if you can prove that the defamatory statement was made with: malice (spite, ill will or meanness) or a high degree of awareness of its probable falsity aka constitutional malice.








You can also check and see if the detective can charge the person with 'false statement to a police officer'.








Please note that this is NOT legal advice. I am not your lawyer and you are not my client. I am just telling you what some of the laws are. You should consult and hire a lawyer who can give you in-depth advise and an opinion as to whether you have valid claims. Hope this helps.