Oak Ridge Today

ORPD review expanded to include all employees, some former workers

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Oak Ridge Police Department Cars

But MTAS will have to agree to changes

The review of the Oak Ridge Police Department has been expanded to include interviews with all employees. The review could also include interviews with former employees who have left the Police Department since Police Chief Jim Akagi started almost four years ago.

Initial plans had called for a limited review of the Oak Ridge Police Department and interviews of a random sample or cross-section of employees.

But the Oak Ridge City Council expanded the review during a special meeting on Tuesday. That special meeting was called after concerns were raised about the initial list of randomly selected interviewees being sent to the police chief, city manager, and all Police Department employees, which raised questions about the impartiality and confidentiality of the review.

By one estimate, the expanded review could include interviews with more than 100 people. And it’s not clear if the Municipal Technical Advisory Service at the University of Tennessee will agree to the expanded review, or if they might charge the city.

The City Council agreed to expand the review during a three-hour special meeting on Tuesday that included criticism of MTAS, accusations of collusion between Council members, and an attempt by Council member Trina Baughn to have resident Joe Lee, one of her chief critics, stop taking pictures during a public comment session. [Read more…]

Council to consider restart on ORPD review during special meeting Tuesday

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Oak Ridge City Council on Feb. 9, 2015

The Oak Ridge City Council will have a special meeting on Tuesday, April 21, to consider three recommendations related to the 30-day review of the Oak Ridge Police Department that was approved in March. (File photo)

 

A 30-day review of the Oak Ridge Police Department had barely gotten started before it came under fire. But the Oak Ridge City Council will try to fix that on Tuesday.

The concern centers on a report that the list of ORPD employees randomly selected for the first 20 interviews was sent to Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi and all Police Department employees, raising questions about the impartiality and anonymity of the review. The reviewer, Rex Barton of the Municipal Technical Advisory Service at the University of Tennessee, apparently sent the list to the police chief for scheduling purposes, seeking to minimize overtime and minimize stress on the officers’ off-duty life.

But those who have pressed for an investigation, including Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn, quickly objected when they learned that the list of interviewees had been sent to the police chief, who has been the subject of much of their scrutiny.

So, in a special meeting Tuesday evening, the City Council will ask Barton, an MTAS police management consultant, to create a new, random list of officers to interview. Council will also consider determining a point of contact in the Oak Ridge Police Department who can help coordinate the schedules of officers participating in the interviews. [Read more…]

MTAS: ORPD review to be extensive, but not clear who will be interviewed

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Oak Ridge Police Department Review Protest

Protesters who want all officers to be able to speak to a consultant reviewing the Oak Ridge Police Department are pictured above outside the Oak Ridge Municipal Building before the Monday night City Council meeting.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 9:35 a.m. April 20.

The review of the Oak Ridge Police Department will be extensive, but it’s not clear yet who will be interviewed, an official said Friday.

The proposal submitted by the Municipal Technical Advisory Service and approved by the Oak Ridge City Council in March called for interviewing a randomly selected group of police department employees. It also called for interviewing other city employees and officers and possibly talking to community leaders not directly employed by the city.

But some have expressed concern that others who want to speak, including former officers and city residents, might not be able to under the limited 30-day review and random selection proposed by MTAS.

“These men deserve to be heard, all of them,” said Christen Thomas, wife of Oak Ridge Police Department Officer John Thomas.

The independent MTAS review will use Police Management Consultant Rex Barton, a former administrative captain for the Athens, Tennessee, Police Department. MTAS is part of the Institute for Public Service at the University of Tennessee. [Read more…]

Council to consider reviewing, investigating ORPD in special meeting Friday

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Oak Ridge City Council on Feb. 9, 2015

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday, Feb. 9, agreed to a third-party review of turnover and morale in the Oak Ridge Police Department but rejected requests for two other probes. On Friday, March 27, the Council could consider reviewing or investigating the ORPD—there has been a dispute over which term to use—placing the police chief on administrative leave, or accepting a proposal from the Municipal Technical Advisory Service to conduct a 30-day review. (File photo)

 

The Oak Ridge City Council will consider whether to review or investigate the Oak Ridge Police Department during a special meeting on Friday, March 27. The Council will also consider whether to place the police chief on administrative leave during the investigation, if one is conducted.

City Council members Trina Baughn and Rick Chinn called for the special meeting earlier this month, and it was set for this Friday, March 27. Baughn and Chinn asked to set the parameters of an investigation and possibly select an investigator during the special meeting. They also asked to discuss and possibly vote on placing the police chief on administrative leave during the investigation.

Once it became clear that the special meeting would be called, Council members Ellen Smith and Charlie Hensley asked to consider selecting a reviewer to conduct the police review, as opposed to an investigation, approved in February. [Read more…]

City Council schedules special meeting for ORPD review, investigation

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Oak Ridge City Council on Feb. 9, 2015

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday, Feb. 9, agreed to a third-party review of turnover and morale in the Oak Ridge Police Department but rejected requests for two other probes. On Monday, March 9, the Council did not consider a proposal from the Municipal Technical Advisory Service to conduct the 30-day review, but members did call for a special meeting on Friday, March 27, to consider a review or investigation. (File photo)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 8:20 p.m.

Despite concerns about the timing, the Oak Ridge City Council later this month will consider steps that could be used to help review or investigate—there has been a dispute over which word to use—the turnover, morale, and administrative policies in the Oak Ridge Police Department.

City Council members Trina Baughn and Rick Chinn requested the special meeting, and they asked that it be held at 6 p.m. Friday, March 27. They said the meeting could be used to discuss and vote on the parameters of an investigation and possibly select an investigator. The two members also want the Council to consider the merits, and possibly vote on, placing Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi on administrative leave while the investigation is ongoing.

Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch expressed concern about having the special meeting that week because officials from the National Park Service and the U.S. Department of Energy are expected to be in town. Gooch, who would prefer to discuss the issues in a regular meeting, said he thought it would be a mistake to have a special meeting like this that could interfere with the visit by NPS and DOE officials. [Read more…]

Council considers ORPD review proposal, ORHS stoplight, amendment for Main Street project

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Oak Ridge City Council on Feb. 9, 2015

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday, Feb. 9, agreed to a third-party review of turnover and morale in the Oak Ridge Police Department but rejected requests for two other probes. On Monday, March 9, the Council will consider a proposal from the Municipal Technical Advisory Service to conduct the review, which will also include administrative policies. (File photo)

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:10 p.m.

The Oak Ridge City Council on Monday night will consider a proposal to use the Municipal Technical Advisory Service to review turnover, morale, and administrative policies in the Oak Ridge Police Department.

The Council will also consider a contract to install a stoplight on Oak Ridge Turnpike in front of the Oak Ridge High School.

Also on tonight’s agenda is a resolution to appoint members of a joint city-school committee that will study options for repairing, replacing, or moving the Oak Ridge Preschool.

And Council members will consider a zoning ordinance amendment that could help the Main Street Oak Ridge project, which will redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall. [Read more…]

Letter: PBA chapter president hopes for fair, thorough investigation of ORPD

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Editor’s note: This is a copy of a March 3 letter to Oak Ridge City Council.

Dear Oak Ridge City Council members:

I am honored to communicate with you today regarding a very important issue affecting the members of the City of Oak Ridge Police Department. Many of them are affiliated with the Knox County Chapter of the Southern States Police Benevolent Association.

Before I discuss the issue at hand, I want to give you a very brief background regarding the PBA. We are not a union. We do not engage in union activities such as work disruptions or strikes. We are respectful when working with the administrations our officers serve. I’ve found most problems can be resolved if both parties come to the table with an open mind and a willingness to compromise.

The law enforcement officers from Anderson, Loudon, Roane, and Knox counties that make up our chapter depend on our local chapter board to monitor situations and protect their interests. Mostly those interests are confined to the following: a fair working environment and returning home safely at the end of a watch. [Read more…]

WYSH: Update on county mayor’s records request in Clinton

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Information from WYSH Radio

Updating a story that WYSH Radio brought you last week, officials with the city of Clinton say they are awaiting a response from the Anderson County Mayor’s Office to their response to her request last week for e-mail and other electronic communications involving City Codes Officer Curtis Perez.

Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank requested all e-mails involving Perez and anyone in the County Public Works Office as it pertains to David Crowley, the director of Public Works for Anderson County. Crowley is under indictment for allegedly inspecting five homes without the proper certification, and that case has resulted in turmoil in the Anderson County Courthouse.

After the request was made last week in Clinton, officials decided to wait for guidance from the University of Tennessee’s Municipal Technical Advisory Service, or MTAS, as to how to respond, and they placed Perez’s computer into the evidence room at the Clinton Police Department until they received that guidance. The city declined the request for records, saying that it was too vague, but indicated they would provide the desired information when they received a more specific request. [Read more…]

WYSH: County officials request records from Clinton as Courthouse case crosses street

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Clinton City Hall

Clinton City Hall (Photo courtesy City of Clinton)

 

Information from WYSH Radio

The controversy and conflict regarding the copying of hard drives from computers in the Anderson County Human Resources Department has spilled across the street from the County Courthouse to Clinton City Hall.

As we have reported, County Human Resources Director Cathy Best announced her resignation Monday after almost 10 years on the job and her looming departure, along with that of her second-in-command Kerri Ashley, prompted County Mayor Terry Frank to try to have their hard drives copied. Her request was made after she was informed last month that former building inspector Lisa Crumpley was planning on filing a wrongful termination lawsuit against the county, alleging that she was fired for cooperating in the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation probe that led to the indictment of her boss, David Crowley, on charges of inspecting buildings without the necessary certifications.

Frank wanted to copy all forensic evidence on the computers used by Best and Ashley, as they may contain information regarding Crumpley’s termination and what became of her personnel file, which went missing days after she was fired. [Read more…]

Clinton Fire Department expansion to cut response times

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Information from WYSH Radio

Workers are building an expansion of the Clinton Fire Department’s headquarters that will create a place where three on-duty firefighters can stay during their shifts, including a sleeping area, a kitchen, a day room, and both men’s and women’s bathrooms. The expansion will also create a new office for the Fire Department.

Officials said that expanding the headquarters and creating space for on-call firefighters to remain on the premises should cut down on response times on the western side of the city.

Clinton Fire Chief Archie Brummitt said the department conducted a study of fire hall locations with the Municipal Technical Advisory Service—or MTAS—several months ago that determined that the majority of the calls answered by the department are centered in and around Clinton’s downtown area. [Read more…]