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| NEWS > 16 February 2008 |
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USA: Ross fires officer set to
Ross commissioners have fired an 18-year veteran of the police force who is scheduled for a second Navy deployment to Iraq next month.
Commissioners voted 8-0 to fire Patrolman Robert Gaertner at their business meeting Monday night.
Officials offered no details on why they fired Mr. Gaertner. "This is a personnel matter," Commissioners President Daniel DeMarco said.
"I've got a wife and two kids," Mr. Gaertner said after the meeting. "I don't know what I am going to do."
He said he has filed a grievance and will ask an independent arbitrator to reinstate him... Read more
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 Article sourced from
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The Register-Guard - Eugene,OR
16 February 2008
This article appeared in the above title/site.
To view it in its entirity click this link.
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Cop alleges police auditor mis
A Eugene police sergeant has accused the city’s first police auditor, Cristina Beamud, of criminal misconduct, an allegation that Beamud’s allies have called baseless and frivolous.
Sgt. Ron Swanson made the allegation in a Feb. 4 letter that he gave to Eugene Police Chief Robert Lehner, who in turn forwarded it on to Lane County District Attorney Doug Harcleroad for review. Harcleroad has launched an investigation, which he said he hopes to complete by Friday.
On city letterhead, Swanson accused Beamud of official misconduct, a misdemeanor crime in which a public servant exploits his or her position for personal gain.
Beamud said during a news conference Friday that she will cooperate fully with the investigation.
“I deeply believe that public officials must account (for their actions), and I am confident that the process and the investigation will not reveal any wrongdoing on my part,” she said.
Swanson’s letter has not been made public, and officials declined to discuss specific details about the allegations.
However, people with knowledge of the investigation said Swanson accused Beamud of harboring a bias against police officers and inappropriatelyand for personal gain influencing the outcomes of investigations of complaints filed against department employees.
What was the alleged personal gain? Her $91,957 annual salary.
Swanson did not respond to an interview request made through police spokeswoman Melinda Kletzok on Friday.
Willy Edewaard, president of the police union, said he has read the allegation but declined to discuss specifics.
Edewaard said police sergeants are not represented by the Eugene Police Employees Association.
“I have heard that there has been a criminal allegation filed, but the association did not initiate it,” he said.
Lehner, the police chief, said the only difference between Swanson’s complaint and any other that the agency receives is its target — Beamud.
Lehner said the department routinely forwards complaints alleging criminal activity to the district attorney for review.
As for the political nature of the situation: “All the more reason to handle it as routinely as possible,” he said.
“My assumption is, frankly, that they will tell us it probably doesn’t meet a prosecutable standard in any case,” Lehner said.
Following the convictions of two city officers for abuse of power and sex crimes, Eugene voters in 2005 approved an amendment to the city charter authorizing the City Council to hire an independent auditor to monitor complaint investigations against police employees. It also created the five-member civilian review board, which reviews completed investigations to ensure fairness and thoroughness.
Beamud, a former police officer, prosecutor and legal counsel to the Cambridge, Mass., police department, took office in October 2006. She spent the first year finding office space, negotiating with the police union, developing rules and protocols for police oversight, and recruiting for the civilian review board. She began formally accepting complaints in October.
Munir Katul, a retired physician and president of the review board, said Friday that the board supports Beamud 100 percent.
“She has our full backing,” he said. “She is very professional and ethical with us, with police officers and with people filing complaints. I have full confidence, frankly, that (the allegations) will be proven untrue. I think they will be proven frivolous.”
Mayor Kitty Piercy stood beside Beamud at the news conference. She said she saw no evidence of wrongdoing in the complaint and attributed the allegations to the “natural tension” between the auditor and a police department that has never experienced independent oversight.
“It’s new, and we’re learning how to make it work,” Piercy said of the oversight system. “I see this as an exercise in seeing what we need to do better.”
As auditor, Beamud reviews completed investigations to ensure they are thorough. She then meets with the employee’s immediate supervisor, typically a sergeant, to discuss the case before she develops a recommendation for the police chief’s consideration.
Between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31 of last year, Beamud conducted 12 such meetings and recommendations.
The allegations stem from the one time Beamud met with Swanson to discuss a case involving one of the officers he supervises.
For her part, Beamud said she will continue performing her duties as always.
Asked how she felt about the allegations, she said, “I don’t think anybody likes to be accused of committing crimes.”
This is not the first time Swanson has taken legal action. In 2002 he filed a federal lawsuit against the city and the police department alleging violation of privacy, breech of employment agreement and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
In his complaint, he alleged that the department forced him to meet with a counselor after two of his subordinates complained about his management style and requested transfers.
According to federal court records that have since been sealed, Swanson said the counselor shared information from their meetings with Swanson’s supervisors, whom he accused of retaliating against him when he complained.
The case was settled out of court in 2004.
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