https://www.facebook.com/hilary.ohm
https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/7c009de1-c9ab-4d7a-a5f5-c5da79a7e266
Let me first explain that I’m going to try and be a good client for my lawyers and be somewhat guarded. But I want to make it clear that my decision to purse this isn’t for any political reasons, I don’t have any specific political ideology. I’m not a Democrat, Republican, nor do I hold any other political alignment or ideology, I truly am an independent. I wanted to make sure that at least one person or organization, with standing stepped up and pursued the truth.
My sole purpose is to get to the truth, and as I have stated many times, in Spokane, unfortunately, the only way to get to the truth is through litigation where individuals can be deposed under oath, evidence obtained through the Court’s discovery process, and where a Judge can review claims of Attorney Client Privilege. The Otto Zehm Case is a perfect example, had the Center for Justice not agreed to help the Zehm family to purse litigation the truth never would have come out.
Mayor Condon has recently blamed the recall efforts against him as politically motivated by Democrats, and the Center for Justice. I want to be absolutely clear my complaint has nothing to do with the recall efforts. Long before the recall effort was initiated or the Cappel Report was released I contacted the Center for Justice. That contact was on March 1st, 2016 and I asked if they would be interested in representing me in this matter. They did not come to me; I went to them!
The reason I reached out to the Center for Justice has nothing to do with any alignment I have with them, I disagree with the positions they take on a number of issues, but one I vehemently agree with is the need in this City for Independent Oversight. I have never had any real involvement with the CFJ other then I asked them to take my case on as they have other cases. Since they aren’t involved in any way with the recall, it only made sense.
Undoubtedly someone will suggest that I’m in it for the money. Nothing could be further from the truth and I fully intend to donate the proceeds of this case to groups that advocate for Independent Oversight?
I wasn’t the least bit surprised. Based on my past experience with earlier Public Records Requests I had submitted, which provided a good picture of how City Hall handles these things, it was not a surprise. But that is an area I won’t get into at this point.
Yes, I do, and I believe the Cappel Report makes that clear. I don’t want to get into any detail but the first response to my PRR, which was on September 29th 2015, made it clear to me that it was going to be a battle to get responsive regards, prior to the election, or anytime in the near future.
I’m willing to go to the extent necessary to get to the truth.
As you can see from the image and link below the Chief of Police job in Spokane was advertised with the good old “OPEN UNTIL FILLED” wording. Apparently the Head Hunter wasn’t aware that in Spokane that language is almost never true, and probably should have read; “THIS POSITION WILL BE CLOSED WHEN WE DECIDE AND ONLY A VERY SELECT FEW WILL BE ALLOWED TO APPLY.”
https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/f2c877a7-abf8-4d41-9daa-94e2731e7726
https://www.governmentresource.com/CurrentSearches
The position is of course still open since the City Council was ready to reject Craig Meidl, and according to Councilperson Lori Kinnear, Mayor Condon “withdrew Craig Meidl’s name from consideration for appointment as police Chief” and according to her she in turn; “withdrew my resolution to confirm Craig Meidl as police chief at Monday night’s council meeting based on the fact that Mayor Condon withdrew Craig Meidl’s name from consideration for appointment as Police Chief.”
Councilperson Kinnear also stated that; “We are encouraging Craig Meidl to apply and be considered with the other applicants.”, I of course have asked her to clarify for me exactly who the “We” is because it would be nice to know who the recruiters are for the open position and whether or not other candidates will also be recruited… hopefully she will respond and tell me.
If Councilperson Kinnear does respond to me, one of the suggestions I would make to her is for whomever “We” is to head down to the Spokesman Review and recruit that Cpl. Clark fellow who meets most of the job requirements for the position, has a degree from EWSC, and has years of experience in evaluating and analyzing the Spokane Police Department. Since the position is still open IMO Cpl. Clark should be able to apply along with Meidl.
Spokane has become notorious through-out the US for doing things “THE SPOKANE WAY”, and of course this is another prime example. Most cities, would of course, re-hit the advertising that the position remains open in hopes of getting a good strong pool of candidates who didn’t previously apply for a number of reasons, including for example, they were strong finalists for the same position in other cities. Most cities knowing full well how important the Chief of Police position is to THEIR City would have the “We” hit the recruiting trail by making contacts with other cities who have recently hired a Chief of Police or have some finalists picked and see if Spokane could attract some of the quality candidates who applied in their city but weren’t chosen for one reason or the other. There are lots of cities in the US who have recently hired new Chiefs or are in the process of doing so. Poaching is allowed in this game.
One big caveat however is that Mayor Condon should not be included in the “We”. If you remember he did a rotten job of recruiting last time when he says he recruited Frank Straub to apply and as in this case paid no attention to the process, hired Frank Straub and brought us to where we are today.
Of course actually adhering to the way the position was advertised would make put out the hiring of a new Chief a little while longer, and as my nature anticipating that the selection process would end up being another example of “THE SPOKANE WAY” I was able to convince a former and respected SPD Chief to come out of retirement for the relatively short period of time to offer the stability the Mayor and Meidl keep saying it needs. In my conversations with my contacts at SPD about that happening they made it plain to me that my idea was “outstanding” and they had the utmost respect for my temporary candidate. Of course there are those including Craig Meidl who would not be on board because of this individual’s no nonsense, no politics, no militarization, approach to leadership.
I’m no dummy I knew that the only way I could convince him to take the temporary position was to be able to convince his long time boss of the importance of doing letting him do it, this fiasco put her over the top and she is now on board.
The CC knows this option is readily available to them and the Mayor and it offers the only legitimate alternative to continuing “THE SPOKANE WAY”, and really getting the right permanent Chief of Police. It would be very difficult for Mayor Condon not to agree since this guy was one of his original go to guys for law enforcement issues, and Condon has asked him to be involved in the various processes a number of times.
So there you go Mr. Mayor, and City Council… it is right there for you…now take it if you truly want a legit process and a top quality Chief of Police.
I just read this SR Story:
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/aug/23/people-involved-in-first-round-of-police-chief-int/
And noticed this:
Here is the deal Eric, you have your Masters if I recall correctly so go ask the Mayor and City Council if you can apply along with Meidl if you feel you have the right stuff.
Ron_the_Cop… is right with this one Eric, your very controversial political promotion should exclude you from being involved… and you gotta know I’m working on that issue. It would be better if you stayed out of it.
Mayor Condon knew that the Council votes were not there to confirm Meidl. By my count the vote would have been 6-1, or 5-2. On the other side the CC also knew that they had the upper hand in making a deal for a number of reasons, the most prominent being the Recall Movement against Condon. Had the City Council voted not to confirm Meidl, as they should have done, it would have looked extremely bad for Condon and likely would have added many signatures to the recall effort. The “Agreement” if that is what it is, I haven’t actually seen one in writing, provides both Condon and the City Council cover. Condon gains by having his second usurping of the process being less of a recall issue, and the CC escapes criticism for being politically motivated obstructionists. So from a political perspective only, it is a soft win for each side. Whether or not it is a win for the Community remains to be seen.
Will there be enough quality candidates wanting the job? Sure there will be and all the crap about Spokane being a career killer is poppy cock. Being the Chief of Police of the Spokane Police Department for the right individual is a career builder not killer, every applicant that applied knows that. The question is; “Is there a candidate in the pool that is willing to say NO to Condon and the Unions when clearly the interests of the Community as a whole are at stake. Meidl has proven by his history and actions that he is not capable of doing so. The vetting process of any candidate should include interviewing individuals that have supervised the candidate in the past in order to get their assessment of the candidate’s fitness for the position. As far as Meidl is concerned there are several of Meidl’s past supervisors available for interview. I’m also quite certain that some of them have already given their assessment based upon actual observation and knowledge of Meidl during his SPD career to members of the City Council, likely doing so because of their concern that SPD was again headed in the wrong direction.
I always find it kind of funny when a reporter uses Anne “Lie you die!” Kirkpatrick for background quotes. Yes, the same Anne Kirkpatrick who stated this;
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2011/nov/02/otto-zehm-case-timeline/
http://www.kxly.com/news/Spokane-Police-Chief-Kirkpatrick-Announces-Retirement/9225616
https://examplepro.me/2016/02/18/what-is-in-anne-kirkpatricks-wallet/
It is real important to understand that Craig Meidl was Kirkpatrick’s third in Command when the Salute took place and the 505 Facebook Page was active. The same Facebook Page that Meidl states he didn’t pay any attention to and about that time ended his Facebook Account. The same Facebook Page that was started by and administered by Meidl’s new choice for Major… Kevin King.
Hell yes, Kirkpatrick would claim the SPD Chief’s Job was a career buster, because it was for her, and that record is clear. I have no idea how many places Kirkpatrick applied in other cities for a Chief of Police job but there were several and she was a finalist in some but was never given the job. Some of those places BTW, did do proper vetting and contacted some local Spokane folks familiar with her treacherous rein. She is now an appointed exempt, not Chief, of Mayor Rahm Emanuel in Chicago. Thank you Rahm Emanuel!
During the Meidl roll out I was asked by a number of people, including some members of the CC, how do we determine where the 505 Facebook money went, and I calmly pointed out that that the first thing you do is ask newly appointed Major Kevin King, if he refuses to tell you then you are stuck because the Thompson support group never filed as a nonprofit, and no one forced them to. So the money was likely placed in a private account, probably at the Police Credit Union and would only be accessible via a subpoena.
https://examplepro.me/2016/08/13/unanswered-questions/
https://examplepro.me/2016/08/13/unanswered-question-addendum/
I want to give credit to SR Reporter Kip Hill for pointing this out in his story yesterday;
“Meidl has said in recent weeks the email was meant to convey the opinions of a dejected department following Thompson’s conviction, not his personal feelings about the case. Meidl also said in an interview last week that he gave money to an account at the Spokane Law Enforcement Credit Union to support Thompson’s family.”
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/aug/22/mayor-bows-to-city-council-will-put-craig-meidl-th/
A story I might add that demonstrates how different sides line up supporters to speak either for or against different issues.
That remains to be seen, and whether or not my choice of an internal candidate, Brad Arleth is even included also remains to be seen even though he actually applied, met all the criterion including education and not being involved in the Salute, and has very limited baggage if any. I have a number of reasons for Arleth being my choice including discussions with former SPD Brass who supervised both Meidl and Arleth, his superior experience to Meidl, and his willingness to stand up against the BS that goes on.
The problem Arleth has is that Condon knows he will buck him and “Big Momma” if they are wrong, as Furniture-gate clearly shows. The other problem Arleth has is that he along with EWU Professor Ed Byrnes in their report pointed out SPD’s problems with minority contacts. I know from personal experience doing similar reports while I was at SPD that doing so carries with it the inevitable distain from other cops for crossing “Then Thin Blue Line”.
This is just one of several where I had to put up with the typical BS from other cops, so I have a pretty good idea what kind of BS Arleth has had to put up with.
If you want to do what is right as a Cop or Chief of Police you have to develop one hell of a thick skin, call it like it is, and not succumb to political, peer, or union pressure. That is the type of leadership SPD is in dire need of right now. Whether it comes from an internal or external candidate, so this process, whatever it might end up being, needs not to be hurried and done with honestly and legitimacy this time.
One thing is for sure, I could never be a politician because I don’t have the ability to shirt around the obvious, which is; “Sir, you don’t meet my qualifications so thanks for not applying!”
Buffalo Brian Breen 