NEWS > 08 November 2006

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The Grand Rapids Press - Grand
08 November 2006

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A firing offense

The Michigan Department of State Police needs to explain exactly how many illegal acts a trooper would have to commit before he or she is deemed unfit to arrest anybody else. In what appears to be a lampoon of the department's code of honor, a trooper who lied about a traffic crash, fled the accident scene and then falsely reported his vehicle stolen, is still on duty. The governor and the Legislature also should inquire into this.

Law enforcement officers are expected to obey the law, not break it. Those who fail to serve with integrity and responsibility should suffer the consequences, not be mollycoddled by colleagues or protected by provisions in a union contract. Has too much state authority over employees been relinquished in a union contract? It seems so.

The justice system gets a black eye every time people in positions of authority receive what appears to be special treatment when they run afoul of the law. That's especially true when the beneficiary is an officer of the law. The light punishment given Trooper David Meder, who pled guilty to two misdemeanors related to failing to report a traffic crash, diminishes public trust in the concept of justice for all.

Last month, Officer Meder, 46, was transferred from the MSP's Traverse City post to South Haven, where he continues on road patrol duty. He was reassigned after being sentenced in June to six months probation and ordered to pay more than $6,000 in restitution for an incident in which he crashed his sport utility vehicle into a utility pole after leaving a Traverse City bar.

Instead of reporting the accident, Mr. Meder left the scene, leaving two loaded guns, his badge and identification in his unlocked vehicle. He called his insurance agent the following day to report his vehicle stolen. He retracted that story several days later. His are not the actions of a person deserving of the public's trust or someone who should be in law enforcement. His judgment is certainly suspect. Anyone could have happened by the accident scene and taken the guns and badge he left behind.

Mr. Meder already has a drunken driving conviction on his record for a 1994 crash in Otsego County while driving home from a State Police meeting. Grand Traverse County prosecutors didn't charge him with an alcohol-related offense in the latest incident.

An internal investigation determined his actions violated the State Police code of conduct. But the 10-day suspension, an order to undergo an alcohol assessment and a transfer to a new post are a minor slap on the wrist for his egregious actions.

State Police spokeswoman Shanon Akans said Mr. Meder's job is protected by provisions of the work contract between the state and the troopers union, the Michigan State Police Troopers Association. The contract needs to be revised if such conduct is not a firing offense.

The deportment of law officers and how infractions of the law on their part are handled by supervisors affects the public perception of justice. Citizens need to see that officers of the law are not above the law.

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Article sourced from

The Grand Rapids Press - Grand08 November 2006

A firing offense

EiP Comments:

The Grand Rapids Press - Grand
08 November 2006