And the email string below provides evidence not only did
Chief Meidl want to try and hide the Lesser video from me but also OPO Logue.
“While Chief Meidl stated (perhaps not an exact quote, but
certainly close) to me and Luvimae that
he wanted it to be handled more like a “Sergeant mentoring in the field when
they see something they don’t like,”
“I have several questions in regards to that, as well as the
initial write-up by Lt Staben which, if taken at face value, was far less than
a thorough and objective review.”
OPO Logue never would have even known about the Lesser
incident and it would have been completely swept under the rug by Meidl and
Crew had I not informed him, and I wouldn’t have known had not good, honest,
hard working sources who want SPD to be great again had not informed me.
Some of the descriptions from people who have seen and are
aware of the video go something like this; “Horrific”, “Criminal”, “A hell of a
lot worse than atrocious”, “Terrible”, “Lord help us”, “Vile”. So, it is no
wonder Mayor Condon, Teresa Sanders, Craig Meidl, and the SPD Director of
Strategic Initiatives Jacqui MacConnell didn’t want people to know.
As far as DSI Jacqui MacConnell is concerned you might
recall she is the one-time candidate for OPO Logue’s position, who after she
didn’t get the OPO job was hired by Mayor Condon to replace the former DSI Tim
Schwering who got his wish and was assisted in becoming an SPD Cop. Schwering
is now the Vice President of the Spokane Police Guild…makes sense…right?
The original sales job for the highly paid and benefited SPD
DSI job was it would provide a civilian to oversee the operations of SPD’s
Internal Affairs operations…well that has certainly turned out to be a Condon
exempt hire expensive joke. If a civilian in that position doesn’t have the
fortitude to stand up and say; “This is wrong, we will not do this!” what the
heck good are they? Obviously DSI Jacqui MacConnell saw the vile video long
before OPO Logue but sure as heck didn’t tell him about it.
It is very highly unlikely that Condon, Sanders, Meidl, and
MacConnell will do the right and ethical thing and have a press conference
showing the videos of the horrific conduct of their Officers, even though they
did it in the McMurtrey case. I’ve thrown out the suggestion to do just that to
the right people even volunteering not to show up at the press conference and
ask the hard questions of Meidl and crew just to help with the Public seeing
the videos, and to help to put SPD on track to at least some transparency. You
might remember even though I’m media I wasn’t invited to the McMurtrey press
conference out of fear I would ask the right and embarrassing questions.
“Spokane Police Chief Craig Meidl held a press conference
Tuesday afternoon regarding the behavior of one of his officer’s caught on body
camera during an arrest last year.”
ANTICIPATING WHAT WILL BE THE NEXT STAGE IN THE COVER-UP.
In all likelihood you will see something like this:
“We can’t release the video because there is now an ongoing
Criminal or IA Investigation.”
In this case that is pure bull poop. Releasing the video to
the public now would not have any bearing on a Criminal or IA Investigation
because the only material witnesses are Cops, all of whom, because Mayor Condon
and the City Council not only signed a contract with the Police Unions which
gives the OPO/OPOC almost no power to do much of anything, but also gives Cops
complete control over Body Worn Camera Video including the right to review any
and all video prior to being interviewed. Condon, Sanders, Meidl, and
MacConnell all know that as does Prosecutor Larry Haskell.
The Spokane City Council has requested to see the video, the
question is what excuse will the Condon Crew come up with to prevent the CC
from viewing the “Vile” BWC Video?
The entire story here is developing as I type, and I’ll try and keep you as informed as possible. It looks like I better keep OPO Logue informed of all of the information I have on serious problems with SPD PACT, and the 2 Million Dollar Lawsuit against the taxpayers.
Even though a number of people have seen the BWC videos who
would be witnesses to the existence and content including most recently OPO
Bart Logue who has passed the information I provided to SPD for an IA
Investigation, I still have a fear the video might mysteriously disappear for a
number of reasons and I’ll mention a few. There is a good chance that if and
when the BWC footage is turned over to me and made public it could easily go
viral at the national level giving Mayor Condon, Teresa Sanders, Craig Meidl,
Justin Lundgren, Jacqui MacConnell, and SPD a huge BLACK EYE because the video
from the BWCs of SPD PACT members depicts Officers among other things
threatening to kill and put a bullet in the head of Lucas
S. Ellerman during his February 2019 arrest. It also shows SPD Officers
breaking out a window in the vehicle Ellerman was in and releasing a K9 on
Ellerman even though it appears he may have been trying to surrender. Witnesses
at the scene of the Ellerman arrest told Officers at the time that arresting
Officers threatened to kill Ellerman however that information wasn’t mentioned
in any of the original reports concerning the arrest and it wasn’t until the
following day that information was somewhat documented in reports.
Even though a mysterious disappearance of the video would
very likely be a violation of State Law, and the City of Spokane Ethics Code,
which cost me a lot of time and money to have included in the City Ethics Code
as a result of my lawsuit , I’m still concerned.
Another concern is that the BWC footage may demonstrate that
Officer Scott Lesser or other Officers lied under the penalty of perjury in
reports or affidavits regarding the arrest of Lucas S. Ellerman so all of the BWC videos
needs to be scrupulously analyzed as was done in this Motion to Suppress in a
dismissed SPD PACT Federal Case Scott and Dan Lesser were involved in.
SPD as is the case with embarrassing information I come up
with has made every effort to block and delay my access to the BWC videos using
what I refer to as the “Fade and Forget Tactic” (memories will fade and the
public will forget) most recently claiming the videos won’t be available for 85
days which is a real good indicator of how bad the videos are.
The truth is the BWC videos could be released today or
tomorrow, all it would take is Mayor Condon, and his cohort Teresa Sanders to
direct Chief Meidl to release them, however the likelihood of that happening is
slim to none as the videos reflect directly on Condon’s tenure as Mayor and his
supposed efforts to clean up SPD since the Otto Zehm case. Nothing has changed
since Otto Zehm and things have actually gotten worse.
Yes, indeed Lucas S. Ellerman is a heroin addict and a bad guy, undoubtedly there will be some that say he got what he deserved, but the important thing to consider is did he deserve what the videos depict, did the SPD PACT stretch the limits of the law once again, and could the same thing happen to an innocent person, those are the issues not the character of Ellerman.
I get considerable reliable information from good, honest,
hardworking cops and others who are appalled at what is going on at SPD some of
whom believe that Scott and Dan Lesser should be fired based up their history
including a number of Officer Involved Shootings they were involved in that
were questioned by many, and Chief Meidl because of his attempts to cover up
what really happened should receive serious discipline. SPD Brass know as well
as I do that if and when the Ellerman videos are public questions regarding
those OIS cases and other issues are likely to be regurgitated, as will their
fitness for duty.
JUST SOME BACKGROUND:
“So would it be unusual for an officer to have shot four
people in the line of duty, as Spokane police Officer Dan Lesser has? Three of
them fatally?”
Where is the City Council on this issue…well the answer is
they are all apparently on board now, one member of the City Council Karen
Stratton the only member of the Council to vote against the hiring of Craig Meidl
by Mayor Condon has been on board all along. It will be interesting to see
exactly what they do to address the issues with SPD PACT, they have a number of
options open to them.
Like any lifelong Spokanite I don’t want my City infested
with rats any more than it already is, but I also want efforts to remove any
infestation done legally and within the standards that apply.
My statement above might sound odd to some however it is
made from the perspective of one heck of a lot of experience in the Criminal
Justice System and firsthand knowledge that bad arrests make for bad law.
Whether someone is Progressive and an advocate for Sanctuary
Cities or a Conservative who is Anti-Sanctuary City you have to look at the big
and long-term picture as well as think about what would happen if law
enforcement decided they can without being accountable cheat to circumvent the
law. Unless someone gets a handle on cheating regardless of what the issue is
Conservatives should give thought to what might happen if all of a sudden law
enforcement decided to enforce gun laws any way they pleased, it works both
ways folks.
After my story yesterday I did receive contact from a
Politician asking questions about what is going on at SPD, now that is a GOOD
THING, but unless Politicians as whole start acting Progressives as well as
Conservatives could very well end up very unhappy.
So how does all the above fit into the MYSTERIOUS CASE OF
ADAM DOE?
There is no question Adam Doe the now deported Alien from
the Ivory Coast was a rat, as Meghann Cuniff (Seems to always be you Cuniff 😊)
the former Spokesman Review Reporter from back in the day when the SR did hard
reporting pointed out a number of times.
There is also no question that Adam
Doe continued to be a rat and drug dealer after all of his previous involvement
with the Law and should have been gone long before his arrest on February 3,
2018 by the SPD Police Anti-Crime Team…so why wasn’t he?
I’ve been reporting for a long time
on problems with the SPD PACT and in yesterday’s story threw in a teaser to see
if I would get any kind of a response and I did. Keeping in mind that WE have a
two million dollar claim against US and have already settled at least one
involving SPD and the Border Patrol.
It is time someone besides me starts
asking hard questions.
To be clear about Politicians asking
questions, I am excluding Mayor David Condon and City Council Member Lori
Kinnear. Condon obviously because he orchestrated the hiring of Craig Meidl to
replace his embarrassing hire of Frank Straub and doesn’t want any questions
asked or answered and Kinnear who aided Condon by championing Condon’s hire of
Meidl.
With respect to just the Adam Doe
arrest here are some questions the Politicians should be asking:
1. Did SPD PACT member Officer
Winston Brooks tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth in his police
report and sworn affidavit concerning his arrest of Adam Doe?
2. Were CBP Agents waiting around the
corner for the SPD PACT to make the arrest?
3. Was Detective Wendt telling the
truth and nothing but the truth in his report when he basically contradicted
Officer Brook’s report?
4. What was former former SPD
Co-op/Explorer doing with SPD PACT during Doe’s arrest, and who invited her?
As most folks know I receive a considerable amount of
information from sources about local law enforcement that other Reporters don’t
and even though I might receive information from a number of reliable sources
on a particular issue I still do my best to independently confirm and
corroborate as much of the information I can. Such was the case with an ongoing
IA Investigation into the possibility of inappropriate conduct between SPD
Officers and a young female Co-op/Explorer.
I keep the OPO and the Spokane City Council aware of what I
find but the Spokane City Council is nowhere to be found, nor is there any
evidence the even care about the problems at SPD, which I find odd considering
many of them are trying to get elected. One would think that Lori Kinnear, even
though she championed the hiring of Craig Meidl as SPD Chief and is the Chair
of the City Council’s Public Safety Committee and who is running for
re-election would have an interest, but she obviously doesn’t.
I sometimes wonder if the City Council is dumb enough to
believe Chief Craig Meidl’s “Kill the Messenger” plan?
You would think that the City Council would figure out that
I don’t make-up the information I receive, it comes from good honest folks who
are very aware of SPD’s downward slide and want that changed. But then again it
is an election year and having the endorsement and financial backing of the
Police Unions is very important.
Sources advised me of what could be a significant problem
regarding the relationships between some SPD Officers and a young female
Co-op/Explorer and provided me with quite a bit of information I was able to
confirm including that the female Co-op was removed from the program for what
was described as…well…Conduct Unbecoming a Co-op/Explorer.
When I get information of this magnitude I think it is
important to get to the bottom of it and try and determine if it is true or
not, so in this case while trying to confirm some of the information I had I
basically gave Chief Craig Meidl a heads up and even though some information
was all over the Public Safety Building and other areas of City Government,
Meidl claimed he knew nothing, and he may not have, but he needed to know,
since this email I’ve provided SPD folks with even more helpful info.
I think the people who read my stories are very aware that
for a long time I have been looking into the very serious problems with the SPD
Police Anti-Crime Team, as a matter of fact I was the first reporter to report
on the 2 million dollar claim against the City and County by Detective Lonnie
Tofsrud and the only one so far who has been reporting an important story for
the entire Community.
Josh Kelety who replaced Mitch Ryals at the Inlander
followed up on my story in his May 2, 2019 Inlander piece. From what I see so
far I think Kelety is doing a good job replacing Mitch Ryals who was on top of
things for the Inlander until he made it to the big time. Kelety is at a bit of
a disadvantage however being new to the area (Oh…my gosh…Seattle! 😊)
and one of his peers at the Inlander has somewhat hindered the development of
good sources.
SPD has initiated an IA Investigation based upon the
information I supplied, which is a real good thing considering the
circumstances and has interviewed some of the Co-op/Explorers which I
recommended. My hope is that it turns out not to once again tarnish SPD and we
get the results of the IA Case soon.
I think however I may have provided more information to SPD
which could extend the length of the IA Investigation. While looking to the SPD
PACT and Border Patrol arrest of Adam Doe who has since been deported and which
once again caused problems between Detectives and SPD PACT I reviewed Body Warn
Camera footage of the arrest and low and behold saw the female Co-op/Explorer
was inexplicably present at Adam Doe’s arrest. I immediately knew who she was
when I saw the footage based upon other photos and documents I had in my
possession, but it was necessary to confirm it was her which I did.
To confirm the identity of the female Co-op I reached out to
Public Safety PIO Michele Anderson who gave me confirmation.
I should note that although I am most certainly Persona Non
Grata with Chief Meidl, and despite his efforts to kill the messenger thus far
Ms. Anderson has been as transparent and upfront with me as is possible in her
position.
This story along with the SPD PACT stories is developing and
I will keep you informed as best I can.
Buffalo Brian Breen 