UPDATE 1.6.10 7pm

A Tallahassee Police Officer fights to get his job back and convince an arbitrator that he deserves back pay and benefits too. Ryan Pender is not only fighting for a spot on the force, he's fighting to clear his name.

"Developing my career in law enforcement which I truly enjoyed doing, which was ... " Pender's voice trailed off and he took a deep breath. Pender fought back tears as he described what getting his job back would mean to him.

Pender was the only officer fired in the wake of a deadly drug sting that resulted in the murder of police informant Rachel Hoffman.

Pender described in great detail the planning that went into the deal and the superiors who approved it all. He described the last time he talked to Hoffman before things went terribly wrong.

"I followed them to Gardner Road. You need to go to get here. Something like you need to get here it looks like it's going to go here. My response was absolutely not, turn around, turn around, come back," Pender said.

Pender's attorneys are trying to convince an arbitrator that he was not negligent or careless.

An undercover agent who was part of the arrest team that night said the location of drug deals often changes, and no one working on the bust voiced any concerns about the plan, the location or Hoffman herself.

"Was there anything about Ms. Hoffman that made you question her continued use as a C-I?" asked attorney Paul Villeneuve.

"No, not at all," he said.

When the same undercover officer realized Pender was going to be fired for his handling of the deal, he asked to meet with the chief.

"It could have been any one of us," he said.

Attorneys will have a chance to submit some final briefs and then the arbitrator will have 30 days in which to make a decision on whether Pender gets his job back.

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Updated 12:14p.m 1-6

Pender testifies of the seven confidential informants he had, Rachel Hoffman was the most knowledgeable of the drug trade.

Pender said Hoffman sold 5-10 pounds of pot a week.

We will bring you more details as soon as they become available.
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Updated 10:42a.m 1-6

Ryan Pender is now testifying.

It is the second day of arbitration at City Hall as the former police officer tries to get his job back.

Earlier Wednesday morning, an undercover officer testified that none of the officers voiced any concerns about using Hoffman as the informant.

We will bring you more details as soon as they become available.
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UPDATE 1.05.10 7pm

A Tallahassee Police officer fired for his handling of a deadly drug sting is now trying to get his job back. Did he deserve to be fired? Or was Ryan Pender a scapegoat?

Arbitration hearings are now underway at city hall.

Ryan Pender wants his job back with back pay and benefits too.

Pender was fired after police informant Rachel Hoffman was killed during a botched bust in May 2008. Four other officers were suspended but Tallahassee Police Chief Dennis Jones says Pender deserved to be fired and he stands by that decision.

"Assuring the safety of our confidential informant in the operation was his ultimate responsibility and accountability," Jones said.

Jones said Pender used "poor judgment." He called the deal "seriously flawed" and said Pender should have pulled the plug on Hoffman's use as an informant.

Yet Pender's attorney pointed out that superiors all the way up the chain of command - including the chief himself - signed off on the Hoffman deal.

The chief says he was not privy to all the details or the last minute changes.

Pender's attorney contends Pender did exactly what he was trained to do and grilled the chief as to why there were no formal policies for handling buy busts like this one.

"There were no policies at all to deal with confidential informants doing buy bust operations?" asked Paul Villeneuve.

"No there's not specific policy where you utilize a confidential informant, the policy addredded undercover," Jones answered.

Soon it will be up to an arbitrator to decide whether Pender's firing was warranted or whether it was arbitrary and capricious.

"Is Ryan Pender the scapegoat?"

"Well, I would say no," said city attorney Jim English. "That's a decision the chief made as to where to place the blame."

Arbitration hearings will continue tomorrow at city hall. No word yet on when the arbitrator might make a decision on Pender's job.
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Updated 11:23a.m 1-5

TPD Chief Dennis Jones says Pender should be ultimately held accountable because Pender recruited Rachel Hoffman and formulated the plan for the deadly buy bust.

We will continue to update this story as soon as more details become available.
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The arbitration hearing for former Tallahassee Police Officer Ryan Pender is underway at City Hall.

The City attorney claims the sting was "seriously flawed" and should never have gone forward.

Pender's attorney claims there was a lack of policy in the buy/bust operations at TPD and Pender did what he was trained to do.

Chief Dennis Jones is the first witness to testify. He is currently on the stand.

We will bring you more information as soon as it becomes available.

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Former Tallahassee Police Officer Ryan Pender is fighting to get his job back and back pay too.

Pender was the only officer fired for his handling of a May 2008 drug sting that ultimately cost informant Rachel Hoffman her life.

Arbitration hearings are set to begin at Tallahassee City Hall Tuesday and are scheduled to last two days.

Pender - who recruited Hoffman and arranged the drug sting that evening - was fired in September, 2008 after an internal affairs review found that he violated nine department policies.

Four other officers involved in the botched drug sting were suspended for two weeks without pay.