A San Antonio police officer fired over a 2019 use of force case has won back his job, after a third-party arbitrator ruled Thursday that Chief William McManus appeared to not have a strong command of all the facts of the case when he testified at the hearing last summer.

Officer Andre Vargas was terminated in June 2020 after SAPD internal affairs investigators determined he violated department rules covering conduct and behavior, treatment of prisoners and use of force.

San Antonio Police Department Chief William McManus and the attorney for an officer fired by McManus for excessive force in 2020 repeatedly sparred during day three of arbitration in the discipline case.

Arbitration began Tuesday for a fired San Antonio police officer accused of injuring a suspect and using vulgar language during the man’s arrest nearly four years ago.

Bexar County prosecutors on Monday dismissed a felony charge against a former San Antonio police officer accused of kneeling on a suspect’s neck during a 2019 disturbance call.

Fifteen deputies, ranging from newly hired temporary jailers to longtime veterans of the agency, ended up on the wrong aside of the law this year, compared to just seven arrested officers from SAPD.

A San Antonio police officer who was fired after kneeling on someone's neck is now facing criminal charges, court records confirm.

SAN ANTONIO Two San Antonio police officers were handed indefinite suspensions after using excessive force on a handcuffed suspect who was not resisting arrest, according to disciplinary records. Officers Michael Brewer and Andre Vargas were both fired for the incident that occurred on Nov. 26, 2019, according to the suspension records. The officers responded to a disturbance call at Commercial Avenue and Grosvenor Boulevard, where they arrested a man. Although the man appeared to provide no resistance, administrators said Brewer caused unnecessary physical violence when he placed he left knee on the mans neck, according to the document. Minneapolis police and other departments across the country have explicitly banned that type of restraint since Floyds death made national headlines.

SAN ANTONIO San Antonio Police Chief William McManus has asked the FBI to conduct an independent review of two police encounters after he indefinitely suspended four officers within weeks of each other. Another man, Eddie Wilson, came out of the house to talk to the officers, according to the report. Officers told Eddie Wilson to stay away and warned him of hindering their arrest of Eric Wilson, according to the report. As officers took Eddie Wilson into custody, Eric Wilson walked into the home and closed the door on the police officers, according to the police report. Two officers were fired after beating Eric Wilson, who was arrested on drug charges in January.