Circleville – A man who has been a Circleville resident for 60 years said that people are “highly disappointed,” in the handling of the Circleville police department case and the payout of two officers who were put on leave for possible wrongdoings.
“I have lived in Circleville for 60 years. I come as a concerned citizen may be late but I come as a concerned citizen because I’ve heard lots of people talking about it. So to the Circleville City Council, the Mayor, and the Law Director, the citizens, taxpayers, and voters deserve a complete and honest explanation as to what has occurred and is occurring within the police department and the city’s administration’s handling of this situation. Based on the information the public has been given not Facebook rumors or misguided opinions I’m highly disappointed in the administration’s and City Council’s decisions to pay individuals who were fired for their positions in the police department.”
Chief Baer was put on paid leave in March pending investigations of allegations of potential misconduct. Including but not limited to harassment, intimidation, retaliation, threats of discipline, misuse of position, improper expenditures, failure to adhere to deadlines, and timekeeping violations.
Deputy Chief Doug Davis was put on leave due to alleged employee misconduct surrounding an interaction between the mayor and him in a meeting. Information also arose of Davis being on the Brady list due to proven inconsistencies in court records.
An independent Lawyer hired by the city negotiated separation agreements with the two to both leave the department for a total payout of over 140,000 dollars. In that agreement, Chief Baer would be allowed to retire holding all of his benefits. Circleville City Council approved those negotiations. The City also made the statement that “The decision to enter into a separation agreement with Chief Baer and Deputy Chief Davis was made to avoid further disruption in the city’s police department and minimize future legal costs incurred by the city.”
For some people this direction has not been overly accepted, “vote for this payoff seems ridiculous,” said Hart in Council on Tuesday, “what are we trying to hide? If people did things that were illegal, they should be prosecuted? If the individuals in the police department were doing stuff that necessitated their removal and or firing? Why are they being paid to leave? If they did not behave in such a negative way? Why were they relieved of duty? How does the temporary I say that temporarily because he was only here a week. How does the temporary safety director Mr. Wilkinson fit into the situation? Are there personal vendettas or grudges involved? We just want to know! If this week’s situation is not explained maybe voters should be asked to recall current administration and councilmembers. We just want an explanation! This Police Department has cost the city Safety forces funds, general funds, or insurance almost $500,000 in the last year through poor behavior and mismanagement.”
The City of Circleville also settled with the K9 incident giving Jaddarius Rose $225,000 from the city while Speakman gets $40,000. The 225,000 dollar settlement came from the city’s insurance and was settled without City approval not from taxpayer dollars.
This week the City started advertising advertising for the Safety Director position
“We did post that position on Monday, and it will be open for two weeks before we start looking at candidates for that position. I have been meeting with the acting chief,” Circleville City Mayor Blanton said.
