I mentioned it in today’s earlier story…so I’ll give you a bit of a tease.

 

A while back I was asked to take a look at an “Investigation” McDevitt had conducted back in 2011 into DSHS. In my opinion it was one of your typical “Lawyer Done Investigations” that end up being a few pages of conclusions, and a few recommendations. McDevitt’s “Investigation Report” was just 15 pages, actually fairly short by lawyer standards. The importance of the investigation called for an extensive well documented fact based investigation. IMO we paid for it but didn’t get it. There was a lot of political back stories involved in the report that I won’t get into here, but what stood out to me the most is McDevitt’s insertion in his report of his very obvious political perspective.

 

When you do an “Independent Investigation” as he was contracted to do, you have to put your bias and political ideology completely aside or it just isn’t INDEPENDENT, I don’t think anyone would dispute that Jim McDevitt has a very Conservative Ideology, which is fine, but you can’t let your political ideology interfere with your integrity. Yes, Gretchen, I know it was a Democratic Governor, and I know he was later appointed to the Clemency Board, but that isn’t the point.

 

Whether you are a Conservative or a Liberal, makes NO DIFFERNCE, even if you believe that all welfare recipients should be subjected to random drug testing, or the State of Washington should be chasing down “illegal aliens” receiving welfare benefits, you would have to agree that recommendations like McDevitt’s have NO BUSINESS in a truly “INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION”, and Condon’s choice should trouble you!

I REPORT YOU DECIDE!!! 

 

 

 TYLER TJOMSLAND Jim McDevitt, director of law enforcement, center, listens to citizen concerns on Wednesday, March 9, 2016, at the Spokane Public Library in downtown Spokane. (Tyler Tjomsland / The Spokesman-Review)

____________________________________________________

When I saw the above photo in today’s SR, I thought to myself what a pictorial on why I’m here and doing this. The photo really tells it all about the continued downhill slide of the Spokane Police Department, and exactly why it continues to slide.

 

The picture depicts Mayor Condon’s choices to run the SPD after his awful decision to hire Frank Straub. The man on the left is Interim Police Chief Craig Meidl of among other things the infamous “Salute” fame. On the right James McDevitt, who has been Mayor Condon’s go to guy on law enforcement issues even before Condon took office, and actually helped to bring us such luminaries as Frank Straub and Selby Smith. I have written some stories about McDevitt but those stories only scratch the surface of McDevitt’s time in Spokane.

 

https://examplepro.me/2016/02/13/no-ideologues-david/

 

It seems that when McDevitt becomes involved in any issue there is controversy, including his “Independent Investigation” of DSHS which resulted in the hiring of his friend (perhaps another day).

 

I really have to wonder if Condon’s made up position of Director of Law Enforcement is simply a ploy to keep the lid on. As I reported earlier McDevitt’s appointment will not be approved by the City Council, and it will be another matter of the Mayor trying to find a way for a back watching scenario.

Although Mayor Condon would like the public to believe he is cooperating in the City Council’s Investigation the reality is that he isn’t, as this Inlander story points out.

 

http://www.inlander.com/Bloglander/archives/2016/03/09/also-not-talking-to-the-straub-investigator-the-assistant-city-attorney-who-was-repeatedly-warned-about-straub

 

If Mayor Condon really wanted to cooperate he as the Head of ALL Public Employees working for the City of Spokane would invoke Garrity vs New Jersey and compel them to talk, Attorney’s just like Cops can be compelled to provide testimony/statements.

 

https://www.lris.com/2011/12/21/continuing-development-garrity-rule/

 

Look at McDevitt’s statements in the SR Story…. Boy are we as Citizens in big trouble.

 

 

“McDevitt said he has come to realize that unless you walk in someone’s shoes, you can’t understand them.”

 

The shoes that Jim McDevitt has walked in all of his life, never had holes in them. You don’t need to walk in someone’s shoes to understand them, you have to be willing to put aside your prejudices and actually listen (LULU). One pair of shoes McDevitt has NEVER walked in is a Cop’s shoes.

 

“I’m open,” he said. “It’s part of the journey, part of the learning process.”

 

There is only a learning process for those willing to learn, and you can’t learn what you should have learned long ago in four short months.

 

 

His intent was not to endorse racial profiling but to point out that it exists, McDevitt said. He blamed having to repeatedly shorten his opinion piece for its lack of clarity.

 

There is always someone or something to blame, somehow around here there is always someone or something.

 

“McDevitt invited people to meet with him about their concerns.”

 

Rule number one for people contemplating a meeting with Jim McDevitt. Always have more than one witness present or get permission from him to record the conversation.

 

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2014/oct/11/administrative-raises-jar-city-budget-talks/comments/

 

Jim McDevitt…If you really want to help the Citizens of Spokane and SPD…GO FLY YOUR DAMN PLANE!!!

 

 

I REPORT YOU DECIDEIII

 

For folks not up to speed on new technology, and the laws surrounding new technology, including our gal Sheila Chase, of “I lost my inheritance to the EPA.” fame. This Law Enforcement pushed Bill is the direct result of the Attorney General’s Opinion. As far as adding oversight is concerned and the Public’s Right to Know it goes a long way toward making it more and more difficult to access body camera video.

 

If the Governor doesn’t veto it, and we end up being stuck with it, hopefully the Washington State Supreme Court will take it up quickly.

 

Matt Shea is opposed to the Bill, but he isn’t the only one, a lot of liberals are too. It is common for commenters on the SR website not to have a clue about topics and comment anyway, but had the story gone into more detail about the Bill’s ramifications the comments may have been different…or than again maybe not!

 

 

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/mar/08/body-camera-bill-passes/

 

 

Unfortunately, we really don’t know and the Mell & Lydia Taylor Investigation as well as the Marriya Wright Investigation did nothing to establish whether there is a widespread problem or not.

 

https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/af2ab57a-7702-4421-a3e0-c5624053ee33

 

This is a copy of the Federal Indictment for the case the Taylors were involved in, some sharp folks may be able to figure out how I knew well in advance by reading this. 🙂

 

https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/59d99817-c85d-4ca2-a3c7-3d9946c7a706

 

 

 

BACKGROUND:

 

Did I know? Yes, I knew long before anyone else did, as a matter of fact Mell Taylor knew I knew and before the stuff hit the fan started his own little investigation of me (I love it when folks do that!).

 

 

 

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2014/mar/22/bodybuilder-faces-federal-drug-charges/comments/

 

 

 

 

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2015/may/20/shawn-vestal-questions-still-remain-about/comments/

 

After reading the Taylor IA case it becomes obvious why the SPD went to great lengths to keep me from getting a copy, and didn’t want it readily available to the Public. As I’ve mentioned time and again the best oversight of any law enforcement agency is an active, probing, and diligent media, something we haven’t had from the SR for a long time.

 

Anyone reading the sordid details documented in the IA Case would draw the conclusion that Lydia Prichard Taylor has NO BUSINESS being a cop nor did her husband. Obviously Mell Taylor was asked to resign by Frank Straub however some type of agreement was reached and he was allowed to retire, what the actual agreement included we don’t know and whether or not the agreement included Straub and Condon not to terminate his wife we also don’t know. A “Shut Down” agreement is common in law enforcement cases where the agency doesn’t want all of the important details to become public, and it basically amounts to shutting an investigation down using the excuse that the cop resigned or retired instead of conducting a full and complete investigation which when done almost always demonstrates poor leadership, and supervision. You will find a number of “Shut Down Cases” on the SPD website.

 

Mell Taylor letter to Straub:

https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/d4d302a3-e001-4b4e-a618-4d88b68e960a

 

Lydia Taylor Agreement:

 

 

The widespread use of steroids by police officers has been known for a long, long time, and here are just a very few examples of what every Law Enforcement Leader or Chief of Police knows, or at least should know.

 

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/01/portland_police_officer_resign.html

 

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/headlines/20130612-arlington-officer-accused-of-buying-steroids-and-helping-supplier-spot-police-surveillance.ece

 

http://www.policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/?fuseaction=display_arch&article_id=1512&issue_id=62008

 

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/12/hundreds_of_nj_police_firefigh.html

 

http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/crime-courts/2014-11-01/police-and-steroids-hard-control-hard-prove

 

 

So why did Frank Straub and Mayor Condon pull a “Shut Down” instead of continuing the Administrative Investigation in an effort to determine whether or not steroid use may be more wide-spread than just the Taylors? I suppose you would have to ask them, but take a good look at the timing of the Taylors case and what else was going on, including the Cotton/Straub cover-up. Take a good look at Lydia Taylor’s claim of discrimination. Review the facts I have reported earlier regarding Lydia Taylor being a key witness in the allegations made against Monique Cotton by other cops. Review the Taylors “Golden Boy”, “Golden Girl” status with Frank Straub, and draw your own conclusions. Apparently not even a cursory investigation into other relationships Brad Hollibaugh had with SPD folks was ever conducted, it’s there. Was there ever any training done of supervisors to identify steroid use which is SOP when situations like this come to light? With all of the media and academic research into the use of steroids by cops and allegations of excessive force, why the “Shut Down”?

 

There are many questions that arise from the Taylor IA case, but some of them just are beyond belief for me. I will address just SOME of the highlights.

 

This image of a portion of Lt. Justin Lundgren’s report should be a real cause for concern:

 

 

 

It is obvious from Lundgren’s report that prior to March 10^th, 2014, and on that date, Tim Schwering the crony Straub hire and Director of IA was aware that the FBI “was interested in looking into the case to see if Det. Taylor was linked to the delivery of steroids, specifically to other members of the law enforcement community”. Given the volume the FBI had good reason for concern.

Unless there is something beyond the “Shut Down” SPD isn’t telling anyone about, that issue was never explored.

 

On March 4^th, 2014 after receiving “the final piece of evidence” Lundgren presented the case to Prosecutor Jack Driscoll for review. Driscoll spent one hell of a lot of time reviewing the case, the case law, the statutes, and later that evening after his extensive review notified Lundgren there was no PC to charge Taylor at the State level.

 

Good Gosh Jack you know, I know, and anyone with any sense knows your office had no business making that call, especially given the circumstances and Wright’s involvement in the case!

 

This image shows the position The Department of Corrections took with respect to Garrity Compelled Statements and their employee Scott Wright, Marriya Wright’s husband. Without going over Garrity again it is not surprising that DOC took this position, who knows what Scott Wright might have opened up to. It was however a nice try on IA’s part (Should have talked to Eric first)

 

This is pretty much just a tidbit of what I see from the report. Keep in mind that I do have a PRR going with the Spokane Prosecutors Office for what they actually have.

 

Could the Taylors case be used in OUR defense of the Straub lawsuit? Hell yes! Will it be? Likely not because the ultimate decision on keeping Lydia Taylor and pursuing the issue the FBI was concerned about was with Mayor David Condon. If you read the IA Report I linked take note of who Lydia Taylor was supposed to report to when she was placed on Paid Administrative Leave. Another thing you might find interesting is Lydia Taylor’s letter to Straub claiming sexual discrimination, harassment, and racial bias the date was Feb. 19, 2014. Also notice the word “Agreement” is always in bold. Also note Lt. Lundgren’s letter demanding an investigation into Taylor’s complaints. Was there one?

 

 

On a side note:

For you IA guys that read this I see some things you need to clean up before one of these situations leads you to the witness stand. Having been on both sides they pop out at me. If you are interested, you know how to get ahold of me, if not I understand.

 

 

I REPORT YOU DECIDE!