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Billings Gazette - MT, USA
14 September 2007

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Billings Police Department, MT

Investigations clear BPD of mi

Nine Billings police officers have been cleared after a spate of internal affairs investigations, city officials announced this morning.

Police Chief Rich St. John and City Administrator Tina Volek outlined the investigations during a 10 a.m. press conference at City Hall. The investigations were prompted by testimony during the civil trial in July of a lawsuit by Officer Steve Feuerstein.

A jury awarded Feuerstein $1.3 million in damages after finding that the city violated Feuerstein's state and federal free-speech rights and state employment laws. Lawyers for the city have asked District Judge Ingrid Gustafson to review the verdict and grant a new trial or reduce the award.

Most of the investigations were conducted by the Police Department. The state Division of Criminal Investigation looked into allegations against St. John and Deputy Chief Joe Bryce, which were deemed "without merit."

The Police Department's probes were conducted by Capt. Tim O'Connell and Lt. Joel Slade.

The state law agency also reviewed the Police Department's investigations that followed the trial and other disciplinary matters.

An investigation of Officer Terry Bechtold, who made the allegations at the trial that sparked the recent internal probes, continues, St. John said. The basis of that investigation has not been made public by the Police Department, but the DCI report and County Attorney Dennis Paxinos' review of the investigations refer to an allegation of perjury against Bechtold.

Among allegations made by Bechtold were that two officers in the detective division, Sgt. Mark Kirkpatrick and Blake Richardson, gave false testimony at previous court proceedings.

Several times in his report, DCI Agent Dave Schettine wrote that Bechtold's allegations were based on hearsay and not first-hand information.

In his review, Paxinos wrote that Bechtold "knew so little about the actual testimony" given by Richardson and Kirkpatrick that he could not knowingly have lied on the stand. Bechtold apparently formed his opinion about Kirkpatrick's truthfulness based on his conversations with former Officer Greg Jacobs, who was acquitted by a jury but fired from the Police Department for punching a handcuffed prisoner in the face.

Paxinos said no criminal charges were warranted.

"Because Bechtold's testimony has no relationship to reality, and because it was his personal opinion and belief based upon innuendo, hearsay, gossip and sour grapes, it, therefore, does not rise to criminal perjury," Paxinos wrote.

All of the probes were reviewed by the City Attorney's Office or County Attorney's Office, and Volek reviewed all of the cases, St. John said. No charges will be filed against any of the officers.

Kirkpatrick also was cleared of any wrongdoing related to his statement at the trial that he shoots cats. He declined to comment after the press conference Friday.

Another officer, Lt. Mark Cady, said he is pleased the internal investigations are completed. Cady was accused by Bechtold of being paid for a diploma he did not earn. The probes showed that two other officers, Feuerstein and Sgt. Ed Young, also received diplomas from the same questionable program.

Cady said he immediately reimbursed the city when he learned the degree was not valid, and reported the matter to his superiors.

"It's a lesson well learned," Cady said. "I just got scammed."

Cady said Bechtold's testimony was "based on rumor mill" talk within the department.

Here is an overview of the investigations based on St. John's statements and the DCI report:

Detective Blake Richardson - Bechtold testified that Richardson lied in his testimony at a Human Rights Bureau hearing in 1999. A Billings woman, Bonnie Castro, charged that she was discriminated against by Richardson and other officers.

St. John said the case was closed in 2001 after an internal investigation and civil hearing. Richardson was given a letter of reprimand by the chief and the city settled the case for $50,000.

Sgt. Mark Kirkpatrick - Bechtold testified that Kirkpatrick also lied in testimony at the trial of former police officer Greg Jacobs. Interviews and a review of trial transcripts show that Kirkpatrick's testimony was not questioned at the time and was not false, St. John said.

The DCI review of the Richardson and Kirkpatrick internal investigation described them as "complete and thorough."

"The allegations made by Bechtold in his testimony regarding Richardson and Kirkpatrick were based on hearsay and not supported by facts personally known to him," Schettine wrote.

In the Kirkpatrick investigation, Schettine wrote that Bechtold's allegations were also tied to the Feuerstein trial. Feuerstein's attorney, Elizabeth Best, said in her summation to the jury that she believed Kirkpatrick was deceitful when he denied using the term "union boy" to refer to Jacobs. Trial transcripts showed that Kirkpatrick stated it was not his personal nickname for Jacobs, Schettine wrote.

During the Feuerstein trial, Kirkpatrick also testified that he occasionally shot cats along the highway. The internal investigation showed that when he was a deputy sheriff in Golden Valley County, it was his job to shoot feral cats, raccoons, rats and porcupines in and around a city dump, St. John said. He also picked up and destroyed nuisance animals that had been trapped.

Kirkpatrick testified he would shoot animals along the highway.

The DCI report stated that as a Billings officer, Kirkpatrick has euthanized injured animals. St. John and Schettine said this is in accordance with state law and an accepted practice according to the Humane Society.

In his review, Paxinos wrote that no criminal violation ever occurred and, in bold and italic print, added that the incidents were "more than 17 years ago" in Golden Valley County.

Four unnamed officers and Lt. Mark Cady - When Bechtold and two other officers were disciplined for mishandling found prescriptions drugs, they gave St. John a list of five officers who were not similarly disciplined in cases of wrong doing.

� St. John said the first officer was mentioned only in passing and was not investigated.

� The second officer was investigated by former Capt. Verne Petermann, who has retired, for not following procedure when a citizen brought in two unwanted guns. The same person later brought in unwanted ammunition. Officers could not find where the handguns were logged into evidence. After checking other logs, commanders found the officer, who had not properly logged the firearms into evidence. The officer was disciplined by Petermann at that time. DCI reviewed this case and found it incomplete, because there was not written documentation of Petermann's verbal reprimand.

� The third and fourth officers are involved in a partner or family member assault case in 2005 in which a police officer was a suspect. The case was investigated by Laurel Police Department and the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office. The officer cooperated, was not charged and the victim later recanted, St. John said. At the time, the incident was reported to the officer's supervisor, Kirkpatrick, and later to Bryce, who was a captain.

An internal affairs investigation was not completed at the time, according to the DCI report. Schettine wrote that documentation of why no investigation was done would have been helpful, but no policy or criminal violation occurred.

� Lt. Mark Cady received $747.50 tuition reimbursement for a diploma from an online college. In 2004, then Deputy Chief Darrell Bell and Capt. Dave Hinkel, who have both retired, questioned the validity of the diploma. An investigation showed the diploma was based on credit transfer and job experience and that the online college was not recognized as an institution of higher learning.

There was not a departmental policy violation, St. John said; the policy did not adequately address degree requirements. Cady repaid the tuition and was given a letter of reprimand.

According to the DCI report, while there was no policy against the way Cady received the diploma, if it was known as fraud, it could be an ethics violation.

A second, unnamed, officer also received a diploma, Schettine wrote. In Paxinos' report, he said Feuerstein and Sgt. Ed Young received diplomas from the same college.

"Ironically, another police officer had the same degree, from the same institution, with the same grades as Sergeant Cady," Schettine wrote. "There was no information as to the action taken concerning the other officer."

Paxinos's review states that Feuerstein requested and received tuition reimbursement from the college in 2004 and Sgt. Ed Young did so in 2005.

Sgt. RD Harper - Bechtold testified that in 2002 Harper performed a maneuver with his patrol car during a pursuit that violated policy.

Harper gave a report and copy of his patrol car video to his supervisor, Petermann. While Petermann was watching the video, then-Police Chief Ron Tussing came in, was surprised that Petermann was concerned about the incident violating policy and remarked that the policy needed to be changed, according to the DCI review.

The policy at the time "was flawed," St. John said, and was changed 11 months later. The department's accident review board went over the incident and issued a "no fault" finding.

The internal investigation at the time was "mostly complete and thorough," Schettine wrote, because there was no documentation about why Petermann decided no discipline was needed.

"It can only be assumed it was because the policy would be re-evaluated," Schettine wrote.

Harper said Friday he was not concerned about the re-opened internal probe that resulted from the civil trial.

"I knew all along I hadn't done anything wrong so it really didn't matter to me," he said. "I've got nothing to hide and nothing to be ashamed of."

Deputy Chief Joe Bryce - Bechtold testified during the Feuerstein trial that Officer Bruce Oberg was taking time off without putting it on his time sheet when he was a court officer in 2005. Bechtold said Sgt. Kevin Unruh saw Oberg during work hours at a store that specializes in racecars.

Unruh obtained radio logs that showed Oberg did not check out and had taken time off. Unruh reported the findings to Bryce, who was then a captain. Schettine wrote that Bryce confirmed the information from Unruh and found that as a court officer Oberg could flex his time and did not have to work straight eight- or 10-hour shifts. Bryce wrote a corrective action form that told Oberg to report to Bryce his intention to take time off during the shift and check in and out with dispatch.

Schettine's report says there was not a copy in Police Department records of the corrective action form. When the department investigated the incident this summer, a copy of the form provided by Oberg and Bryce confirmed it was the one he prepared after Unruh's report.

"The investigation speaks for itself," Bryce said Friday.

Officer Shane Schaff - DCI investigated a January 2005 incident in which Schaff was involved in a wreck in his pickup and later was cited for drunken driving by the Montana Highway Patrol. The Police Department conducted an internal investigation and Schaff received a week's suspension without pay and was to receive an alcohol evaluation.

DCI reviewed the internal investigation of Schaff, although the case was not brought at the civil trial. DCI found the internal probe "mostly complete and thorough," but it lacked the outcome of the traffic citation and did not record Schaff's lost wages. Schaff pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of reckless driving and was fined $300 in Justice Court with 90 days of jail time suspended.

At the press conference Friday, City Attorney Brent Brooks flanked St. John and Volek but did not speak. The conference room at City Hall was filled with citizens, City Council members and news reporters for 45 minutes.

The department continues to review some of the allegations made at the trial, St. John said, including whether officers follow policy in areas such as logging drugs used for training by the K-9 team.

"You have to realize we have limited resources and this took two months," St. John said when asked why those reviews were not yet completed.

In the DCI report, Schettine wrote that policies, procedures and laws evolved and "what was once not prohibited might now be a violation. Examples in this review included a change in the pursuit policy and an awareness of diploma mills."

Some of the allegations go back as far as 2000, which hampered new investigations, Schettine wrote.

"In addition, if any disciplinary actions was previously taken, it would be inappropriate (and perhaps unfair) to again punish the offending officer with a second disciplinary actions for the original investigation," he wrote.

St. John and Volek were questioned by Feuerstein's mother, Diane, who said they did not respond adequately to her concerns about the department in 2005. Diane Feuerstein said she met with both administrators about her son and allegations of wrongdoing in the department.

St. John and Volek declined to comment, citing the on-going legal action in the case.

Volek called the last few months "long and dark" for the Police Department and the city, and she said she was glad the investigations shined light on the department.

St. John said he has made "distinct changes" in the department since becoming interim chief in 2005. The changes include establishing the Office of Professional Standards, which conducts internal investigations and works on policy, and changes to the complaint process so citizens may file anonymously.

While the DCI report found one internal investigation incomplete, Schettine's report noted that a captain has been assigned to oversee complaints and internal affairs investigations and a computer tracking system with a central repository for all files and actions has been put in place.

"While past administrators might have handled things differently, it is the current administration that is responsible for current and future policies, investigations and discipline," Schettine wrote.

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Billings Gazette - MT, USA14 September 2007

Investigations clear BPD of mi

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Billings Gazette - MT, USA
14 September 2007