You are on page 1of 2

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

You might also like