The Franklin police chief is retiring from the force about 18 months earlier than planned as a result of an inquiry into his and the deputy chief’s actions following a pursuit an officer was involved in earlier this year.
Police Chief Tim O’Sullivan will retire from the department after Mayor Steve Barnett selects a new police chief and deputy chief, a process he plans to complete in the next 30 to 60 days, Barnett said.
O’Sullivan will not be involved in picking the new chief, but is staying on in the interim to assist with the transition to the new administrative team, Barnett said.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]
The mayor plans to notify the city’s nearly 50 police officers in the coming days that they can apply for the job. He will then schedule interviews with candidates.
The decision comes after the police chief and deputy chief’s actions and inaction were questioned regarding the steps they took to look into the matter after a police officer pursued a suspect in April. The Indiana State Police report and police radio communications from the day indicate that a maneuver was used that the Franklin Police Department no longer allowed.
The pursuit ended with a crash.
The administration did not call for an accident review board to study the accident or conduct any investigation into what happened. The accident review board was called only after questions were asked on multiple occasions by the Daily Journal.
The matter came to light when the state police crash report and the Franklin Police Department report conflicted, and the state police crash report said that the officer intentionally struck the fleeing suspect’s car, which is a maneuver not allowed by Franklin police. Both reports are public records.
At issue was how the police department polices itself by guaranteeing that standard operating procedures are followed, typical reviews of incidents are conducted and that all officers face the same processes. Standard operating procedures cover everything from undercover narcotics investigations to the use of Tasers, and officers who are found to violate one of the policies can face repercussions, up to and including suspension or termination.
Barnett launched his own inquiry and pledged to get to the bottom of what his chief and deputy chief knew about the incident, and when, and what they did with the information. He conducted that this week by meeting separately with O’Sullivan and Deputy Chief Jim Hoeing.
Through that process, O’Sullivan decided he was ready for an early retirement, and Barnett agreed to grant it, Barnett said.
“I think he’s done a good job as chief,” Barnett said.
The chief and deputy chief are responsible for looking into issues, calling for reviews when required or appropriate and enforcing the standard operating procedures.
“My responsibility is to have a chief and deputy chief in place who want to follow these rules,” Barnett said.
Hoeing and O’Sullivan said in June that the maneuver was not used, and that no information suggested that it was used, and they did not know the possibility that it was used, despite the fact that their own internal reports and a recording of communication between the officer and dispatchers from the day indicate that the maneuver was used.
In July, O’Sullivan said that Hoeing had been informed, but he had forgotten the information and never relayed it to him.
Barnett learned that the administrative team, which consists of O’Sullivan and Hoeing, did know right away that there was a possibility of the maneuver being used and that no action was taken until the review board was called more than two months later, after questions were raised.
No action was taken to call the accident review board in the days or weeks following the accident, as is typical when an officer is involved in any crash, because “in their mind, there was a reasonable doubt,” as to whether the officer did the maneuver, known as PIT, or pursuit intervention technique, Barnett said.
Hoeing explained why they had reasonable doubt as to whether the maneuver was used, and said if it was used, it was poorly executed, Barnett said.
O’Sullivan told the mayor in their meeting that the police department’s policies don’t outline a timeframe for calling the review board after an accident, Barnett said. However, common practice is that the board is convened within days or a couple weeks.
Barnett said that O’Sullivan acknowledged that he should have called the review board sooner.
The mayor did not speak to the officer involved, but said that he supported the officer taking action to protect the public.
As mayor, Barnett appoints the chief and deputy chief, and they serve at his pleasure. City rules allow the mayor to remove them from their posts, but if they are also merit officers, they would return to their rank as police officers. Hoeing is a lieutenant; O’Sullivan is a patrol officer. The chief makes $73,246; the deputy chief makes $66,814.
Barnett wants the next administration to continue with his and the department’s priorities, which include the school resource officer program, the addition of a downtown police officer and more community policing. He also wants police officers to be held accountable for how they are spending their time, he said.
