THROUGH MY EYES
By Ron Edwards
One of the rules of investigating corruption is to determine the level of the offense.
Overtime is that kind of issue. People steal overtime either by falsifying hours worked or working hours not needed or not assigned. Either way, overtime pay is stolen from the taxpayers.
The level of Minneapolis Police Department overtime abuse was so great that it finally caught the attention of City of Minneapolis auditors scrutinizing overtime hours, which led to the investigation of MPD unit commanders by the assistant chief and deputy chief.
The lawsuit filed (see April 5, 2011 Star Tribune, “2 Minneapolis officers sue, alleging retaliatory demotions”) caused me to ask in my April 20, 2011 column (“New lawsuit continues old MPD cover-up of White corruption”) what the driving force was for the auditors to provide information that caused the assistant chief and deputy chief to take decisive action to remove Lt. Smith and Sgt. King from duty.
A February 14, 2011 letter from Assistant Chief Janae Hartung to Lt. Smith states they were placed on administration leave pursuant to Article 16 of the labor agreement. The letter instructed Lt. Smith to not be on any property of the MPD or the FBI without prior authorization.
Thinking back, I remember seeing that kind of statement almost four years earlier, when Sgt. King and others had brought allegations to Chief Dolan against Lt. Keith, then head of the Violent Offender Task Force (VOTF). See my column of August 29, 2007.
Consequently, déjà vu. For more déjà vu, see my list of columns of MPD cover-up on my web page at www.theminneapolisstory.com/solutionpapers/31minncops.htm.
The deeper question and mystery is of how officers of the VOTF unit positioned themselves in the investigation of an assistant Hennepin County attorney, John St. Marie, who had been involved in a Hennepin County prostitution ring almost two years ago (Strib, July 12, 2009). These commanders indicated they had no knowledge of the overtime that was being identified by Lt. Smith, Sgt. King, and others in the VOTF Unit.
Now it is not clear, as of the writing of this column, April 20, if these investigative reports will be made available to the public. Of course, under discovery, within the rules of the court, this information will be provided to the city in its defense against the allegations by Lt. King and Sgt. Smith.
But the question remains: Where was the chief during this investigation?
On page 13 of the complaint filed by Lt. Smith and Sgt. King, at lines 97 through 105, there is a most disturbing discussion between Chief Dolan and Lt. Smith about what Chief Dolan knew, when he knew it, what he saw, and what he asked. The public and a jury will have to determine the truth.
At line 102, the chief acknowledged that he “personally reviewed the documents and personally determined that Smith and King had not violated any laws,” but he refused to identify the specific information on which he based that view. I have reason to believe that the chief knew as far back as January 26, 2010, when he wrote the letter praising the outstanding investigative work of Lt. Smith and St. King, that he used it to expose the so-called corruption of Black police officers.
It appears that Lt. Smith and St. King knew all about how things were being approached in the investigations, including that by the county attorney’s office. This is why it would be important for the city council to scrutinize all timelines and the issues of overtime as well as the issue of retaliation.
And whether in closed or open sessions, it is important that the chief explain to the council who it was he was talking about in his letter of January 26, 2010, as the chief’s letter states that Smith and King were the targets for retaliation. But by whom?
And why, as soon as Assistant Chief Janae Hartung made the federal authorities aware of her actions on Feb 14, 2011, did all federal agencies with personnel in the VOTF unit order their people to withdraw from the unit? Knee jerk reaction? Action due to uncovering significant criminal abuse? Just a desire to distance from it?
The public has a right to know the answers to these questions. Will damages be paid out? Will the money go to those with a legal right to receive it, or is this is another scam perpetrated upon the taxpayers of Minneapolis?
Stay tuned.
Ron Edwards hosts “Black Focus” on Channel 17, MTN-TV, Sundays, 5-6 pm and co-hosts Blog Talk Radio’s “ON POINT!” Saturdays at 5 pm, providing coverage about Black Minnesota. Order his books at www.BeaconOnTheHill.com. Hear his readings and read his archive of columns, solution papers and “web log” at www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
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