1. From The Columbian:
In Our View: Removing stains
Thursday, September 11 | 12:01 a.m.
Navin K. Sharma was victimized by a vicious, intentional campaign of racial discrimination and workplace abuse that could only be imagined in the Deep South a half-century ago. But to the shame of our community, the taunting, prejudicial retribution and other hideously primitive conduct was heaped upon Sharma by his fellow police officers, supposedly Vancouver’s “finest.”
For that, the Vancouver Police Department has painted itself with stains of bigotry, hatred and cultural ignorance that will be difficult to wipe away. City Manager Pat McDonnell seems prepared to begin the cleansing process. “Obviously, there are going to be a lot of lessons,” McDonnell said on Tuesday after the city agreed to pay Sharma $1.65 million to end a racial discrimination lawsuit. “I think we may need to bring in outside folks to give us different eyes on how we view things.”
Soon, if not immediately, “I think” should evolve to “I know,” and that outside review of the Vancouver Police Department must come from as independent a source as possible.
This review is owed to more than just Sharma, a man of East Indian ethnicity who despite all the discrimination put together a glowing record of service in the department. It’s owed to the many officers of the Vancouver Police Department who do things right, and to the citizens of Vancouver who look to those police officers for protection.
This will take months or longer to unfold. For now, the focus remains on one man whose curiosity about the future is as deep as his disbelief about the past.
Sharma was fired two years ago after making what his attorneys say were inadvertent mistakes in filing reports. And in 1998, his attorneys say, Sharma was labeled a snitch for testifying against two sergeants in an internal affairs investigation. What ensued was a wave of racial taunts, vindictive actions by supervisors, hateful pranks by fellow officers and, in short, the methodical erosion of a fine police officer’s record of service.
What’s worse, the harassment and sheer meanness was continual. Sharma previously settled two out-of-court claims dating back to 2001, one against the city and one against Clark Regional Emergency Services Agency.
This time, Sharma and his attorneys were ready to go to court with the sworn affidavits of 30-plus police officers who would supply damning evidence of the discrimination. Others would testify in support of Sharma’s honor and integrity.
Obviously, that was why the city agreed to pay what Sharma’s legal team called one of the largest single-plaintiff settlements — if not the largest — in state history.
Additionally, the city will correct Sharma’s personnel file to show he retired in good standing, make sure his law enforcement credentials are untarnished, replace any state benefits that were lost and write a letter of gratitude.
That’s a lot of money and a lot of work. Still, those three stains — bigotry, hatred and cultural ignorance — remain. Only with McDonnell’s continued resolve to reform the department, followed by a thorough and independent review, then an arm’s-length list of corrective measures, can the cleansing begin.
Police Chief Cliff Cook, who has been on the job for a year and a half, has his work cut out for him. An embarrassed community will be watching closely, while one fine cop wonders how life in Vancouver, Wash., in the 21st century could have ever become so cruel.
2. I found this in the comment section of oregonlive.com in the article Vancouver urged to investigate police after ex-officer's settlement published Monday September 15, 2008. The commentator is RghtThing2Do:
From VPOG President Kipp:
VPOG response to the Columbian editorial about the Navin Sharma lawsuit settlement:
Understanding that editorials are just opinions, those opinions should be based upon the facts presented. The editorial offered by the Columbian regarding the settlement between Officer Navin Sharma and the City of Vancouver is an offense against line personnel of the Vancouver Police Department for it's slanderous accusations that show total disregard of the facts in this matter. Did the Editor(s) even read their own story or review the comments made by Officer Sharma and his attorneys during his post-settlement press conference? It appears that they did not considering the baseless and insulting attack against the Police Officers, Corporals, Detectives, and Sergeants who have supported Officer Sharma throughout this process.
There has never been a finding that any line personnel of the Vancouver Police Department engaged in an "intentional campaign of racial discrimination and workplace abuse" against Officer Sharma. That statement is outrageous, and the author owes every officer at VPD an apology. The Columbian is blaming the rank and file members of the police Department for acts committed by others. You should make sure to report the facts correctly before heaping such inflammatory rhetoric on a group.
The members of the Vancouver Police Officer's Guild who have unanimously stood behind Officer Sharma had nothing to do with his termination or the mistreatment he received which led to the settlement. In fact, our members lack the authority to impose such discipline and we warned department managers that terminating him was not warranted and would be overturned in arbitration. Those responsible include VPD command personnel, personnel in the City Attorney’s Office and ultimately, the City Manager himself. As Pat McDonnell prepares “…to begin the cleansing process” as you state in your editorial, he should start by looking in the mirror.
Officer Sharma himself acknowledged the support he received from his colleagues, and was very clear to identify just who was responsible for this situation. How did the Editor get this so wrong?
Jeff Kipp
President
Vancouver Police Officer’s Guild
3. The Columbian's twist on Jeff Kipp's letter:
In our view: Find the truth
Wednesday, September 17 | 12:01 a.m.
Outside, independent review is vital after Vancover police officer’s lawsuit who could possibly oppose public enlightenment about public officials? The public officials’ union leaders, course.
So we were not surprised when Jeff Kipp, president of the Vancouver Police Officers Guild, sent an e-mail to The Columbian opposing an outside, independent review of a recent personnel case in the department. His stance rebuts a Columbian editorial urging a review of the police department after the city settled a racial discrimination lawsuit, agreeing to pay former police Officer Navin K. Sharma $1.65 million. Kipp insists the fault lies with the city’s top management, not with rank-and-file police officers. Yet, according to a Columbian story last week, affidavits in the Sharma case included many references to improper conduct by officers. Kipp might have overlooked the editorial’s insistence that a thorough review is “owed to the many officers of the Vancouver Police Department who do things right, and to the citizens of Vancouver who look to those police officers for protection.”
That is the first irony here, that the police officers union would oppose the revelation of how well they do their job. One would think the union would welcome any type of scrutiny.
A thorough review means top to bottom, from the police officer on the street to the sergeants, captains and other key decision-makers, to the two other unions embracing employees of the police department, to the city manager, city attorney’s office, city councilors, mayor, indeed anyone even remotely connected this case. To his credit, Kipp seemed to agree with a broader review: “If you want to look at an overall process and have it be a thorough, comprehensive examination, we would welcome it and take a wait-and-see approach … If it is (City Manager Pat McDonnell’s) intent to make things better where we work, we would appreciate that.”
But here is the second irony in this case: McDonnell is catching heat for the recent personnel controversy, yet he is one of the strongest advocates of a thorough and independent review. If McDonnell is as flawed as many of his detractors claim (several residents at Monday’s city council meeting demanded he be fired), why is McDonnell so adamant about outside scrutiny of his work as city manager?
The answer is clear: McDonnell wants the truth, all of it, problems and solutions, plus a course of corrective action.
Just as the police officers union contradicts itself by singing the officers’ praises while opposing a review that would reveal such attributes, McDonnell’s detractors contradict themselves by demanding his firing even before the expository independent review, which they also demand. Well, if McDonnell is inept, why not wait for the supporting evidence?
If McDonnell is proved by an outside review to be at fault in the Sharma case, that might surprise city council members and, quite frankly, us as well. Earlier this year the council conducted a “360-degree evaluation” of McDonnell’s performance, consulting not only city department managers but also community representatives. In a dozen categories, with 5 being the highest rating, McDonnell was scored 4.45 overall, up from 4.22 in 2004. His highest score was in “results orientation.”
For that, the council unanimously approved a 12.3 percent raise for McDonnell, taking his salary to $171,650. In Vancouver’s form of government, the city manager is one of the most powerful and responsible positions. McDonnell, for example, single-handedly hired Police Chief Cliff Cook a year and a half ago.
Vancouver residents, especially taxpayers, deserve the whole truth and total accountability from their police department and from their city government officials. Let the search for that truth begin expeditiously.
4. Now thread back to the comments posted at oregonlive.com by CourtRecords (these blog comments are wonderful!):
Posted by CourtRecords on 09/18/08 at 8:58AM
To my astonishment – honestly, to my shock! staff writer, Jeffrey Mize of the Columbian obediently prints Pollard and McDonnell’s blatant lies in an effort to surreptitiously shift alliances to drive a wedge between the rank & file of the VPOG and the Vancouver citizens, all who CONTINUE to expose the corruption and fight for CHANGE.
The evening of September 15, 2008, several members of the Vancouver-Portland community spoke out and in front of the City Council (Mayor [Royce] Pollard, City Manager McDonnell, City Attorney Ted Gathe, and the Council members).
Please view it if you haven’t. It’s short.
It is beyond powerful.
Go to CVTV Vancouver WA website. Direct Link is:
http://www.cityofvancouver.us/cvtv/cvtvindex.asp?catID=19&folderID=1945
If you can not access it directly, then go to the main website:
http://www.cityofvancouver.us/cvtv/cvtvindex.asp
Go to "Featured Programs" and click on: "Vancouver City Council 9-15-08". Then click on "Citizen Communications" under agenda. Watch the TV!
I would like to bring to your attention and stress the following: Mize, I hope you are reading and listening.
1. Court records show that the culture of discrimination & retaliation exists within McDonnell’s office, the City Attorney’s Office, and amongst the very top echelons of the VPD Command Staff. They are the ones who conspired to fire Officer Sharma. Not the VPOG.
2. Sworn testimony shows that the racial epitaph referencing Officer Sharma as a “Sand *igger” was not made by a member of the VPOG. It was made by a City/County high level executive officer & retired Vancouver Asst. Chief, Marty James.
3. The ethnically derogatory term “Sharmagedon” & related statements of racial animosity were not made by VPOG Officers. It was made by non other than the City Attorney assigned to the Vancouver Police Department, Mr. Terry Weiner. Sworn affidavits & deposition testimony from ex City Attorneys support this.
4. Court records show that the City Manager Mr. McDonnell & VPD’s Chief at the time, Mitch Barker, were named as defendants & not anyone from the VPOG. This is because they were the principle people who conspired along with a few others within the Command Staff and the City Attorney Ted Gathe. Evidence in the court papers now suggests that overwhelmingly.
5. Depositions, testimony and produced documents also show something far more egregious. It shows that Ted Gathe, the Chief City Prosecutor, committed perjury in his video taped deposition as did former Chief Criminal Attorney Josephine Townsend. It appears that these City Lawyers lied in a federal proceeding. That is a felony.
In summary, I call attention to my fellow citizens to look at what has happened across the country when politicians, top City Officials, and the Command & Control of the Police Department runs amuck: People get prosecuted for crimes & people go to jail!
- Detroit Mayor Case: Mr. Kwame Kilpatrick perjured in a federal case involving the unjust firings of two Detroit Police Officers. The Mayor will spend five years in a federal prison for that perjury. (AP Wire March 25, 2008).
- City Prosecutor Mike Nifong: Zealously accused 3 Duke University LaCross players of criminal conduct. He withheld “Exculpatory evidence”. A 30 million dollar law suit followed. Nifong was disbarred. He went bankrupt. (ABC News June 16, 2007; The Smoking Gun archives; AP Wire).
Stand United and firm behind all the great Police Officers of Vancouver, the back bone of our law enforcement.
Expose the corrupt Police Command and the “Nifongs” and the Kilpatrick’s” of Vancouver.
******************
All of this was posted online. If it disappears it's not because i made stuff up!
Read about Navin K. Sharma's lawsuit:
5 comments:
The Columbian is a very big part of the corruption here in Clark County WA it only focuses on what it feels that the readers would be excited about reading. thinking that the politics in Clark County are not that valuable to what readers get for 50 cents they fail to tell the truth. As when I sued Sheriff Gary Lucas it wrote that I had all these false charges and Mr. Lucas was a victim in the case of Double Jeopardy in which I spent 192 days in jail on a 180 day sentence in which I should of not been in jail in the first place. NO the Columbian did not PRINT that. POOR Mr. Lucas and the whole County Court System for me missing my SONS graduation. When I was struck by a robber leaving Fred Meyer's parking lot the Columbian printed this man was charged with Vehicular Assault, Felony Hit & Run and Robbery. As I await for crime Vitim's to send me notice of approved services I get denied because there was never a charge brought against the man Andrew Bartholomew . I go down to the Columbian and tell them they have all readers believe that there was such. They right away pull it off the internet but did they ever apologize for the mistakes they had ever made NO they don't. this is big reason that the Columbian has no future if it keeps people like Stephine as a reporter. Making false statements is a crime or is it.
Yes and I know about when I write something about the Court system or the Columbian they do not print it so again shows them hiding in their own CORRUPTION.
I am new to the boards and just wanted to say i am very very happy to read this blog.
Oh my goodness, I just love those floral bags with the wood handles. Those doors are super too! Very cool! Great blog!
Susan Graham
These cops are all out of line in the Western Fourth Plain area. All they want to do is go 35 mph over the speed limit for no reason. They won't come into the rose mere neighborhoods unless it's to arrest someone how come only the broke people get harassed down on fourth plain in the bad neighborhood but you could be driving recklessly on Mill plain and it's all good I don't know but I think this is all a major crock of S*** you know what I mean anyway gimme some feedback.
I have just moved here from Texas and my wife accidently grabbed the wrong clothes from the laundry room here near fourth plain road, a lady came by and said she thought my wife may have accidently got her clothes and my wife was shocked and immeditly gave her clothes back and apologized. The woman then called the police after getting her clothes back, just to be mean I guess. She called worried but, I said don't worry about it and we laughed thinking the cops would say ok, just becareful next time. In stead Vancouvers finest harrassed her in front of my kids and told her she was a thief and said if anything ever came up missing in this area they would come back and arrest her even if she didn't do it. I had no idea how bad this nieghborhood was when I moved here but, we were judged, harrassed and intimidated by the police just a short time after moving here. The cops never even bothered to ask her to show them the original load of clothes that she didn't get, very shotty police work if any at all. They don't intimidate me so easy, I can't wait until they get to deal with a man instead of scaring a mother of four on our youngest sons birthday. These two were very poor excuses for people much less for officers.
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