Union Letter

George Lang, Trustee Catherine Stoker, Trustee Lee Wong, Trustee West Chester Township 9'113 Cincinnati-Dayton Road West Chester, Ohio 45069

This letter is written on behalf of the members of Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 186 in response to the recent developments which have come to light calling into question the actions of our Chief of Police. Our membership is extremely proud of our Department and the excellent service we have always provided this community. We are truly honored to serve the citizens of West Chester Township and are concerned about the implications the Chiefs actions will have on the reputation of our Department. As you know, our Internal Affairs Unit was unfortunately called upon to investigate the circumstances involved in the Chief s decision to hire probationary employee Donald Gatliff. We wholeheartedly appreciate the difficult work performed by Internal Mfairs and we support the integrity and thoroughness of the investigation. Upon the conclusion of the investigation it became apparent that the Chief s actions called into question whether he violated the very tenants and principles that we in law enforcement are sworn to uphold. The honesty and absolute truthfulness of a Police Officer must not be compromised in any fashion or we are crippled in being able to function as Police Officers because we lose the trust of the public we serve. The actions of our Chief in counseling Mr. Gatliff during the hiring process demonstrate that he was willing to sacrifice the integrity and ethical standards of our Department in order to secure an employment opportunity for a relative. The Chiefs conduct in this regard caused us to conclude, through a Vote of No Confidence, that the Chief should no longer serve as the leader of this Department. We believe that through his actions he has demonstrated an inability to lead by example and has been

George Lang, Trustee Catherine Stoker, Trustee Lee Wong, Trustee November 5,2008 Page 2

rendered unable to enforce the code of conduct which we, as Police Officers, are sworn to follow. Even more significantly, the chiefs actions could cause this Department to be questioned by the citizens whom we encounter hundreds of times a day. That is a situation which not only harms our community but could also impact the safety of our Officers. We strongly urge you to consider the issues we raise in this letter which resulted in the members' Vote of No Confidence in the Chiefs ability to continue to lead this Department.

/J

Frate~a._ll/1»

d'~tJ(--Michael Quinn, President

F;:tdgeNO 186

Timothy Mintkenbaugh, FOP Lodge No. 186

~~

Keith Beall, Secretary FOP Lodge No. 186