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In Praise of Councilman DrabikLetter To All Union PoliceParma Police FOP Press ReleaseRoad Construction Safety Tips| AN OPEN LETTER TO THE MEDIA BY PARMA POLICE SUPERVISORS FOP REPRESENTATIVES |
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| March 25, 2004 |
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"JEERS . . . to Parma officials for delaying the completion of an audit of police overtime that should have been finished months ago. It's hard not to question the seriousness of the city supervisors who failed to get records to Parma Auditor Dennis Kish in a timely fashion. The city administration is under a cloud, and will be until it can enact reforms the state audit can guide." -from The Plain Dealer on 03/26/04 Dear Media Member, Having exhausted our patience with normal channels, we finally seek the power of the media to help urge the city of Parma and its contractors to fulfill their moral and legal commitments to the people of Parma and the members of the Parma Police Supervisors bargaining unit. After suffering the ill considered and often unfounded slings and arrows of flippant remarks by city officials, some past and some present, denigrating the Parma Police Department we look forward to seeing real change in what we consider to have been unprofessional and irresponsible treatment of the police. Attached are several documents showing how we have tried to elicit actions by city officials and procuring other documents through the open records laws, and in each case we have been ignored, “blown off,” or given the unsatisfactory response of referring questions directed to the law department to the special investigator, instead of properly separating those questions and requests between the law department and the special investigators. We have asked for documents and asked questions that any citizen has a right to, and been not merely refused, but ignored. Unfortunately, our only recourse other than the media pressure such improper behavior by city officials may generate is to have our union (the FOP) sue the city for the information requested and for legal fees. We will. This action is a lamentable last resort, and is indicative of our desire and need to reach accord with a city bureaucracy that includes Mr. DiCicco, the investigator contracted to investigate the police. When we ask about the progress and status of this investigation, we are met with silence. This is not responsible government. No matter how thorough the research or voluminous the data, taking over a year to reach a conclusion is excessive, with no end in sight. Did these persons work on this investigation full time? The answer must be NO. Otherwise, how could any team work so slow? Of course the parties contracted to perform this job have other jobs and other competing demands on their time. Would anyone have a part-time contractor build a house or put in a driveway, coming back to the job only when they had the time? Of course not. The seemingly never-ending delay in completing this investigation reeks of the kind of job engineered by Mr. Starr on the Whitewater investigation, where the original goal was lost in a maze of sidetracks that had nothing to do with the stated aim of the investigation. The people deserve proper answers about the overtime and sick time use by the police. After two years of trial by media, including the inane comments from politicians (making their own repeated and egregious blunders “collectively for the public good”) the people have little faith in our department, despite a remarkable record of success in solving crimes and maintaining an enviable record of quick response despite a well documented shortage of police. It is tempting to blame the police chiefs and supervisors that have worked their way up the ranks risking their lives, performing CPR, dealing with unhappy citizens misled about police work by Hollywood and city hall, working with too few officers, and incompetence in other levels of city services. The auditor’s office, for example, blundered the implementation of new (at the time) payroll software (GEMS), repeatedly makes errors on pay and withholdings (improper pension deductions over a five year period, violating contracts by making payments inconsistent with the contract), the latest non-compliance with state mandated audits and of course, the police and fire levy fiascos. The former service director cost the city far more than even the most dire scenario of police “double dipping” by ordering salt late last winter! Embezzling by the low income housing director, and a building department head that was unqualified (by professional standards) that was found by a special investigator to have broken the law, with no criminal charges recommended and absolutely no disciplinary action taken. Is this what the police can expect? At least the city would be consistent. Yet the call is for “heads to roll” if any police are found to have done something wrong. Well, we are not against anyone, including ourselves, to be held accountable for their actions. It is our hope that we are treated fairly and consistent with the way other people are treated. Who else suffers months on end while the special investigation plods along? How long can we and our citizens be strung along so? How do we have any clue if Mr. DiCicco and his fellow investigators are taking four hours to do thirty minutes of work? Are we wrong to ask? Would not any citizen have a vested interest in asking? How are the hours billed verified? Is this a case of what’s good for the goose is not good for the gander? Are only the police to be held accountable, and not others? We even have unanswered questions about the possibility of special investigation contractors working on this case while on the payroll of other employers. Maybe the media can get these answers, as apparently we do not deserve them. Cleveland police, when confronted with allegations of overtime abuse in court were subjected to an investigation ordered by Mayor Campbell. She wanted answers and got them in the one month she allotted for the investigation. If something is important, a priority, then do not hire part-timers with a reputation for working slow! This is not rocket science, and it is not the crime of the century. There may well not even be any crime. The vast majority of questions about sick time use, part time work, and overtime could have been answered prior to the exhaustive dissection of thousands of overtime/time-off slips, daily records, schedules, etc. All they had to do was ask. What a waste of time and money! Chief Manning had initiated reforms of sick time and part-time work policies prior to being forced to consider retirement after having his character slandered and libeled by people who have no first hand knowledge of any of the facts. Many of these reforms are now in place, and further progress is being made everyday under Chief Hoffman. Unfortunately, the public does not know this, because we are all still guilty without having been tried! Where is the outcry lamenting the lack of professional training of the Parma Police due to budgetary considerations? Recent years, and especially the last few, city hall has pulled training budget dollars prior to the department being able to use it. Demoralized police, improperly staffed and inadequately trained are not a recipe for success. Taking $500,000 from the police overtime account to “pay for the special investigation” is the type of mindless reactionary response that only hurts the city in the long run, causing a lack of training and discouraging good candidates for recruitment. What type of response do we get when we question what seems to be improper payments to outgoing officials of the previous administration? After waiting over two weeks for a reply, we are given a photo copy of a page in the AFSCME contract, a contract not applicable to those officials. We know of no FLSA or Wage and Hour ruling that dictates these salaried bureaucrats should have received such payments. No contract with them exists, and no such city ordinance covers this. Robert Dybzinski was denied a similar request, and yet we are told of “prior practice.” Well, we think our city was improperly deprived of money, and we cannot get a coherent response with any credibility. Do we turn to the media or other law enforcement agencies? It would appear no other choice is left. Our desire is to serve the people of Parma to the best of our ability. We wish to leave a legacy of progress and professionalism to those that follow us. We are being stifled in our ability to maximize our efforts by the onerous effects of this interminable investigation, the morale busting effects of lack of support by elements of city hall, and a wary public hungry for reassurance that their police department is not a bunch of crooks. Mayor DiPiero is an intelligent and personable man, has much better credentials than his recent predecessors, and has hired people based on qualifications instead of connections. The potential for great improvement in the relationship of the police department and city hall, with its inherent increase in efficiency is staring us right in the face. It is our intention to cause this synergy to happen by any means necessary, including this appeal to the public. All we want is fair and reasonable treatment that any citizen deserves, and we will continue to dedicate ourselves to this city and its people. Thank you for the opportunity to present our case. Please make this information available to the public, and feel free to contact us for information or for clarification. Sincerely, Capt. DC Zarzeczny, Lt. Joseph Manning, Sgt. Joseph Bobak (440)887-7316, (440)887-7350, (440)887-7329 FOP representatives of the Parma Police Supervisors Bargaining Unit "The police supervisors' union has accused city officials of wasting time and money investigating allegations of sick leave and overtime abuse by officers. In a letter to the media, the Fraternal Order of Police compared the city's special investigator, Richard D. DiCicco, to Whitewater independent counsel Kenneth Starr, who investigated former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton. "The seemingly never-ending delay in completing this investigation reeks of the kind of job engineered by Mr. Starr on the Whitewater investigation," wrote Capt. Dan Zarzeczny, Lt. Joseph Manning and Sgt. Joseph Bobak. The city launched its probe in March 2003. The police supervisors noted that an investigation of Cleveland police overtime took roughly one month. "This is not rocket science and it is not the crime of the century," they wrote. "There may well not even be any crime." The FOP also complained that the city lawyers have refused to turn over records of the investigation because they contain evidence." -Joseph L. Wagner, "Parma police supervisors say probe taking too long" in The Plain Dealer, April 17, 2004 After reading Joseph Wagner's unbiased article "Parma police-pay investigator runs out of money" (May 19), I am simply stunned at the extent of Council President Chuck Germana's personal bloodlust. To compare, as Wagner once put it, "possible payroll padding" with a war that has cost nearly 800 American lives is absurd. By using this hyperbolic comparison, Germana makes a mockery of every soldier killed and wounded in Iraq and this is only the beginning of our concerns. After prematurely putting the police levy on the ballot and throwing away thousands of dollars in a never-ending witch- hunt, now the city wants to waste even more of our money? The purpose of investigations is to find out if wrongdoing has taken place, not to prevent certain council members from ultimately looking like fools for prior inflammatory statements. While the city loses money, Parma residents continue to be lied to and police officers and their families continue to be strung along. The investigation has had more than a year, and if nothing conclusive has been found by now, then Mayor Dean DePiero needs to step up and do everything in his power to put an end to this insanity. Finally, since this investigation has not found any definitive wrongdoing on the part of any Parma police officer, perhaps it is time that we all applaud the Parma police for what now appears to be continued hard work and dedication in the face of this recent smear investigation. -Matthew D. Zarzeczny, "Time to put an end to Parma police witch hunt" in To the editor: Between prematurely putting the police levy on the ballot and throwing away thousands of dollars in a never-ending witchhunt, the city wants to waste even more of our money by forestalling the completion of an already costly investigation. The purpose of investigations is to find out if there is any wrongdoing, not to prevent certain council members from ultimately looking foolish for prior inflammatory statements. While the city loses money, we continue to be lied to and police officers and their families continue to be strung along – all for the sake of an apparent pet project of a handful of officials. The investigation has had more than a year and if nothing conclusive was found in that amount of time, then Mayor DePiero needs to step up and do everything in his power to put an end to this insanity. The time has also come for Parma residents to apply every legal means necessary to end this outrage, including writing letters to the media and city officials expressing our disgust at this prolonged travesty. Since Mr. DiCicco has already misspoke about when this sham would be over, why should we have any faith that he is telling the truth this time? Finally, since this investigation has not found any definitive wrongdoing on the part of any Parma police officer, perhaps it is time we all applaud the Parma police for what now looks to be continued hard-work and dedication in the face of this recent smear investigation. -Matthew D. Zarzeczny, "It's time to put an end to police investigation" in In an interview, [Capt. Dan] Zarzeczny called the investigation "a witch hunt." Zarzeczny said Special Prosecutor Mike Nolan and investigator Richard DiCicco spent $100,000 on the investigation and came up empty- handed. They tacked on the income tax charges to justify their bills, Zarzeczny said. Zarzeczny, a director of the Parma Fraternal Order of Police, charged that Law Director Tim Dobeck, who hired the special investigators, was punishing him for raising embarrassing questions about wasteful and illegal spending under DePiero and his predecessor, former Mayor Gerald Boldt. . . . Semanik's lawyer, John Luskin, said that the charges against his client are false and that his exoneration would result "in a black eye for the city. . . ." "This . . . investigation is a sham and not worth the $100,000 that was appropriated by council," [Councilwoman Michele Stys] said, predicting that Nolan's investigation would doom the police tax request on the May ballot. -Joseph L. Wagner and and Timothy Heider, "Parma officers indicted in tax probe: Former chief pleads guilty to evasion" in City Safety Director Gregory Boeppler . . . the 30-year veteran of Cleveland's police force said a six-month suspension without pay for a misdemeanor is "extremely heavy." Both he and Mayor Dean DiPiero indicated that Semanik may already have been punished enough. . . . "It is not a crime of violence or moral turpitude," he [Boeppler] added. "It was a mistake made." . . . Zarzeczny vowed on Wednesday to go to trial Oct. 3. The police-union activist called the case a political vendetta and said the city would be "embarrassed beyond comprehension" by what comes out in court. "This is blatant persecution . . . of Manning and his cronies," Zarzeczny said. -Jim Nichols, "Parma officer pleads to misdemeanors " in |
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