An investigation into Portland's Police Chief Mike Marshman and his executive assistant stems from a police bureau training, where his lieutenant may have signed the chief in on a log suggesting he had attended, when he had not, according to sources familiar with the inquiry.
Marshman declined to say what led to the investigation. He said he would let the process run its course.
Lt. Mike Leasure
He and his executive assistant Lt. Mike Leasure were placed on paid administrative leave late Friday as the city's Independent Police Review Division investigates the two.
The recent training was for command staff about the use of the bureau's Employee Information System, a computer-based system intended to identify at-risk employees who have a high number of complaints, or a pattern of excessive use of force.
The bureau's use of a system to identify problems was a part of the city's settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice after a 2012 investigation found that police used excessive force against people with mental illness.
Statement by Chief Mike Marshman
"The day I was sworn in as Chief, I made a commitment to establishing internal legitimacy and restoring trust, both within our organization and with the community we serve. Part of that commitment is respecting the investigative processes we have in place to ensure accountability at all levels of the organization. These processes apply to me as much as they do to every member of the Bureau. Regardless of rank, everyone should be accountable and it starts with me.
"I look forward to the completion of this process and am committed to full transparency so that everyone has access to the facts.
"I'm very proud of the work Portland Police Bureau members do every day to keep our community safe and they continue to have my full support."
In a report submitted to federal Justice officials on March 3, the city-hired team of Chicago academics monitoring the settlement reforms found the police bureau in "partial compliance'' regarding its use of the Employee Information System. According to their report, they found no evidence that the system administrators had examined, as required, the criteria for flags to be sent to police supervisors on officers of concern.
"We have been previously informed by PPB that some type of systematic review for EIS flags would occur, though we see no evidence of it,'' the report by compliance officers Dennis Rosenbaum and Amy Watson said.
The report noted some resistance to the Employee Information System from officers, citing a survey that found the officers don't have confidence in it and believe its designed to punish them. Rosenbaum and Watson wrote that the system should be used for "supervisory coaching to save careers and help officers lower their exposure to discipline.''
Constantin Severe, director of the Independent Police Review Division, said he couldn't say anything more because his division is in the middle of the investigation. City Auditor Mary Hull-Caballero also declined to discuss what prompted the inquiry.
Someone informed the Police Bureau's internal affairs division about the discrepancy regarding the chief's attendance at the in-house training, according to the sources.
Internal affairs alerted the Independent Police Review Division, which conducts inquires into alleged misconduct by high-ranking officers of the rank of captain and above.
-- Maxine Bernstein
mbernstein@oregonian.com
503-221-8212
@maxoregonian