An amended Tort Claim was filed yesterday by Thurman’s
lawyer Mary Schultz one of the amendments to the claim, though not in the least
bit surprising, is an allegation that Ozzie in usual Ozzie fashion “has been
using his position to intimidate, shape, and/or alter evidence among department
personnel”.
That tells me that some folks inside Ozzie’s department are
risking intimidation and are talking, which based upon what I know about the
case isn’t a good sign for Ozzie and if Mary Schultz has sound evidence Sheriff
Knezovich has intimidated, shaped, and/or altered evidence that would be a
crime. There is no question that if this claim isn’t settled by the County and
it ends up in a lawsuit that some of the deposition questions will be directly
related to efforts by Ozzie to intimidate, shape, and or alter evidence among
department personnel.
As far as Ozzie using his office to try and intimidate
people Mary Schultz won’t have any problem finding witnesses who will testify
that Ozzie has used his office to try and intimidate them, it is a pretty long
list.
Even though Ozzie says the IA Investigation of Thurman was
“very thorough and can stand on its own”…
Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said the investigation into Thurman was very thorough and can stand on its own against the claim Thurman filed.
“It’s in here folks. I hope the plaintiff’s attorney at least read the file before she wrote this,” Knezovich said.
“On Monday afternoon, Knezovich said the tort claim is “not an accurate depiction” of Hines’ report. He said he could not immediately discuss details because he didn’t have the report in front of him.”
Ozzie sure isn’t anxious to get copies of the reports to the
media.
Perhaps because some of those privy to the IA Reports don’t
believe there is enough clear and convincing evidence to prove Thurman made the
comments Ozzie alleges he did.
Since both the apparent leaders in the Mayoral race won’t
respond to my tough and legitimate questions I thought I would try this to get
a few answers. Starting with Candidate Woodward and her most recent public
statements which Candidate Stuckart is more than welcome to jump in on.
“The one issue I have with the ombudsman situation as it stands now, I think the disciplinary measures need to come from the police chief,” Woodward said. “I wish we didn’t have to have an ombudsman situation, to be honest with you. I want to be able to believe that the police chief can do his job and weed out any bad apples if there are any.”
MY FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS:
“I think the disciplinary measures need to come from the police chief,” Woodward said”
***Candidate Woodward are you aware that the OPO Ordinance
strictly prohibits the OPO from having any involvement whatsoever in
“disciplinary measures” and they are entirely the purview of the Chief of
Police and the Mayor?
***Are you aware that the OPO Ordinance strictly prohibits
the OPO or OPOC from even commenting in any way about “disciplinary measures”,
or lack thereof, taken by the Chief of Police or the Mayor?
“I wish we didn’t have to have an ombudsman situation, to be honest with you. I want to be able to believe that the police chief can do his job and weed out any bad apples if there are any.”
*** Candidate Woodward are you aware that after former SPD
Officer Karl Thompson was convicted in Federal Court and sent to prison for
violating the Civil Rights of Otto Zehm and lying about his actions which the
Federal Prosecutors described as an “extensive cover-up” and “violent abuse of
power”, that in February of 2013 the voters of the City of Spokane
overwhelmingly voted in favor of a City Charter change creating the Office of
Police Ombudsman?
***Were you aware that the two individuals who championed
the Charter Change at the time were Conservative members of the City Council
Steve Salvatori and Mike Allan?
*** Were you aware that at the time the FBI was
investigating the Otto Zehm case then Chief Anne Kirkpatrick and Mayor Verner
gave their complete and unequivocal support to Karl Thompson despite the
obvious cover-up?
***Were you aware that as a result of the extensive SPD
Cover-up former SPD Officer Tim Moses plead guilty to Obstruction charges and
left SPD subsequently being placed on the Prosecutors Brady list along with
current SPD Officer Sandra McIntyre who was also involved?
***Are you aware that current Police Chief Craig Meidl whom
rumor has it you intend to keep said about Karl Thompson after he and his wife
saluted Thompson as he was hauled off to prison? If you haven’t you can read
them here.
***Are you aware that the Spokane Police Guild opposed any Spokane
police ombudsman’s authority to conduct independent investigations into alleged
officer misconduct which forced the issue to be subject to contract
negotiations during which the powers of the OPO have been extremely limited and
further limiting OPO powers are a big part of the current ongoing contract
negotiations?
***Candidate Woodward have you studied the Use of Force
Commission Report and the COPS/DOJ Collaborative Review?
FINAL QUESTION:
***Candidate Woodward do you feel it is an appropriate expenditure of taxpayers dollars for Chief Meidl to assign an SPD Crime Analyst to do an analysis of all of my the Public Records Requests and my stories in an attempt to determine who leaks information to me?
This is actually a political power struggle and attempt to
salvage a failed legacy with Mayor Condon and his Conservative allies on the
Board of County Commissioners trying to gain complete control over the
taxpayers dollars used to fund Public Safety Services while at the same time help
their Conservative buddy Condon out with his legacy, pitted against the
primarily Progressive Spokane City Council, with Conservative Council Member
Mike Fagan likely seeing the disadvantages for City taxpayers joining the
Progressives on the issue.
The record is quite clear that Mayor Condon and Sheriff
Ozzie Knezovich wanted a Metro Public Safety Model for all of Spokane County
and despite warning after warning Condon hired Rudy Giuliani and convicted
felon Bernard Kerik sycophant Frank Straub who had previously been booted from
his Public Safety Director positions in Indianapolis Indiana and White Plains
NY. We all know what a blunder Condon made with the hiring of Frank Straub, and
the millions it cost taxpayers.
“Condon said he recently met with Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich, who earlier advocated consolidating the two police agencies.”
Knezovich
said Condon “wants to make sure this is a good fit. I don’t want to speak for
the mayor, but it was my understanding that (full consolidation) … is not off
the table,” he said.
“With change at the top of the Spokane Police
Department, Knezovich said the timing is perfect for the city and county to
explore combining the force with the Sheriff’s Office. The police and sheriff’s
departments are, respectively, the largest and second-largest law enforcement
agencies in Eastern Washington.”
“Condon said he recently met with Spokane County
Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich, who earlier advocated consolidating the two police agencies.”
Knezovich said Condon “wants to make sure this is a
good fit. I don’t want to speak for the mayor, but it was my understanding that
(full consolidation) … is not off the table,” he said.
To make matters even worse and showing his cards Condon
hires Conservative buddy and Straub sycophant James McDevitt as the “Director
of Law Enforcement” to continue SPD’s downfall.
To continue the Condon/Straub SPD downfall Condon bypasses the Police Chief hiring process and hires Karl Thompson sycophant Craig Meidl to continue the Straub, McDevitt SPD downfall. Meidl most recently stroked Straub during the July 16, 2019 OPOC Commission Meeting (more coming later on that dog and pony show).
Anyone who has studied the
SREC/SPOCOM issues knows what a mess it is and how the meeting minutes
demonstrate concerted efforts to grab taxpayer dollars while at the same time
cut the City of Spokane out of any say whatsoever in decisions. It is hard to
understand why other reporters haven’t mentioned all of the previous failures
of Steve Reinke, SREC’s executive director.
Although I seriously doubt there will be a real effort to
move the Precinct back to the city core until sometime after we have a new
Mayor, because doing so would once again prove the very expensive Condon/Straub/Meidl
Precinct Model has been a failure, I can’t help but wonder if some member of
SPD balks at the move and Craig Meidl is still Chief Meidl if he will make
another stupid and frivolous IA Complaint against any member who balks at the
move like Meidl did with Captain Brad Arleth during the move from STA to the
Intermodal Center.
Of course, if there ends up being an IA Complaint made by
Meidl there will, as is always the case with SPD, some type of retribution
against any SPD Officer trying to do the right thing.
Whomever might report the facts of any retribution on the
part of SPD will get the typical “Bad Boy/Girl” email from Meidl, something he
apparently gets a kick out of doing.
It is amazing isn’t it how things change during election
cycles, one candidate brings up what could be a legitimate point and all of a
sudden it becomes difficult to tell what any candidates true position actually
is, or exactly what overall costs might be. In the case of Council Member Lori
Kinnear who championed the hiring of Craig Meidl, it is really difficult!
Buffalo Brian Breen 