My comments follow this story from early last week, which was never picked up locally in print or electronically. I've highlighted below in red the pertinent parts of the article.
_______________________
http://www.marconews.com/news/2008/jul/21/5-finalists-named-marco-police-chief/
Marco Eagle
Five applicants remain in running for Marco Island police chief
By KELLY FARRELL
July 21, 2008
Making it to the final five is no fantasy for the remaining candidates vying for the position of Marco Island police chief.
A towering stack of nearly 250 resumes for the position has been narrowed down to the top five applicants by City Manager Steve Thompson. The position pays a maximum salary of $103,364 plus a fringe benefit allowance.
Two applicants are from within the Marco Island Police Department including acting Chief Thom Carr and Officer Ed Stenzel.
"I knew this position was desirable but you've got some heavy guns there competing ... I'm elated that the city manager put me in the group with them," Carr said.
While this will be Carr's first interview for a police chief position, two of the other candidates, Nicholas Kaiser of Troy, N.Y., and Thomas Magill of Hallandale Beach, have at least four years experience as police chiefs in their current departments.
Magill, 54 has been chief of the Hallandale Beach Police Department in Broward County since January 2004 and has worked for the department since 1974. He is the third generation of Magills in law enforcement, he said.
Magill was in meetings until 9 p.m., Monday, and first learned that he was among the top five contenders when contacted by the Eagle.
"I was smiling from ear to ear," he said, after he read the e-mail during a break in his meeting.
Although he was honored to be considered among five successful candidates, he said the decision to leave Hallandale isn't an easy one.
"I love Hallandale with all my heart ... (My leaving) is done out of love. I want all my friends to have the opportunity to succeed like I have succeeded," Magill said of his coworkers in Hallandale.
Magill said he sees himself as a police officer before a chief.
"I may be a police chief but I'm still a police officer. I wouldn't ask another police officer to do anything I wouldn't do myself," he said.
Magill plans to visit Marco Island prior to an interview in the next couple weeks to become further familiarized with the island, which he visits frequently. He recalls a photograph of his children sitting on the mermaid statue at the Marco Island Marriott from one of his first visits many years ago.Kaiser, 60, has a condominium in Port Charlotte purchased last year and has visited Southwest Florida but says he has few other state or local ties. He is the Troy, N.Y. police chief and the department is about four times the size of the Marco Island Police Department with 122 sworn officers and a $14 million budget.
The Marco Island Police Department has 32 sworn officers and a $3.9 million budget.
Kaiser said learning Florida laws will not be an "insurmountable challenge" and his priorities would include community policing and providing a high quality of life on Marco Island.
"I'd look at the crime problems ... Doesn't seem like you have many," he added.
Marco Island's violent crime rate is one-tenth of the national average and property crime rate one-third the national average, according to the FBI Report of Offenses Known to Law Enforcement.
Carr has been the acting chief since Roger Reinke became Naples' assistant city manager in May. Carr started his career in Indianapolis and is one of the original members of the Marco Island Police Department, formed nine years ago.
"I've been preparing for this since the department has been here," Carr said.
He added that he was not surprised to see Stenzel among the final five. Stenzel did not return phone calls to comment.
" ... (Stenzel) is very qualified and I encouraged him to apply," Carr said, adding that it would not be awkward if he became second in command to Stenzel upon completion of the interviews Aug. 1.
Stenzel, currently a patrolman, has 38 years of law enforcement experience including two years prior experience as assistant chief of police in Milwaukee, Wis.
He has nearly as many years experience in law enforcement as the youngest of the five candidates has in years of life.
The youngest, Edward Preston, 40 originally from Bradenton is currently the deputy chief of police for the New Bern Police Department in North Carolina. He described New Bern as an area similar to "Southwest Florida in the early '80s."
Preston added, "This is an opportunity to move back to where I'm from. I only applied for one job. This is it."
Preston, a Persian Gulf War veteran of the Marine Corps, said he is eager to learn the "vision" that citizens, department heads and the city manager has for the police department.
All five candidates will be interviewed Aug. 1 The interview panel will be made up of the city's five department directors and Chief Rob Petrovich from the City of Cape Coral, who Thompson said came highly recommended from other area city managers.
"I have as many questions for (the panel) as folks will probably have for me," Preston said.
Read Thomas A. Magill's resume (.pdf)
____________________________
Feeling the very negative way that I do about Hallandale Beach Police Chief Thomas Magill, I genuinely hoped that Marco Island would've been foolish enough to hire him, so that he could get
out of Dodge as soon as possible.
Then, the residents of the City of Hallandale Beach could've finally had a long overdue public airing about what sorts of qualities they're looking for in a Police Chief, and the sorts of policies its residents want to see their new top cop pursue.
Maybe select someone who, unlike Magill, actually thinks that having a regular daily police presence along the public beach is a good idea, esp. on weekends, and beer-y obvious three-day holiday weekends in particular.
It not only would give peace of mind to HB residents and visitors enjoying themselves, but also
greatly relieve the strain and anxiety of the (contractor) lifeguards out there, who have long felt they're out-manned, and already have a tough job to do when its crowded.
Who knows, perhaps a police presence at the beach on a more regular basis might actively discourage people from using the mesh aluminum benches as grills -even to the point of placing charcoal on them- and thinking they'll get away with it -again.
(With obvious physical damage to the bench.)
Maybe a more consistent police presence at the beach would also discourage throngs of kids from Miramar High School from coming over after school during the school year, and, as happened a few months ago, choosing to settle some beef at school by coming over here and having a huge fight in the HB beach parking garage, with things being trashed left and right.
(Not that the Herald or Sun-Sentinel ever wrote about the incident.)
Perhaps a new HB Police Chief would think that actually having directional signs somewhere in the city indicating the physical location of the HB Police Dept. is a good idea, since as has been stated here before, there currently are NO such signs anywhere in the city. Really.
Who knows, maybe he'd even want to see a couple of directional signs at the city's busiest intersection -and the city's choke point- of U.S.-1 and Hallandale Beach Blvd., as is commonplace in most towns, large and small, in this country.
Honestly, why do you suppose that all the folks from Hollywood City Hall were so taken aback at the location confusion when they came down for the joint City Commission meeting a few weeks back? It's no big mystery. Lack of proper signage!(If you don't believe me, just ask them yourself. How do you suppose I know? They told me.)
Maybe HB can even hire a Police Chief who thinks it's a good idea for his Officers to take the initiative when they see long stretches of street lights out at night for more than a day or two, and collect that info somewhere when their shift ends, so that someone in the city will actually do something about it the next morning.
As opposed to the current reality of them either completely ignoring the public safety problem
for months at a time, as has been apparent for years, or, simply putting it in a "Quarterly Report" that practically nobody will ever read.
Who knows, maybe we can even get someone in charge who thinks that it'll be comforting to residents and taxpayers alike to have a regular police presence at that choke point of U.S.-1 and HBB, so that cars "in the block" actually get ticketed, as they would in Aventura, but never are in HB.
Maybe HB can even select a new Police Chief who takes the initiative to actually discourage crimes of opportunity from happening in the first place, by telling commercial property/strip mall owners that his Police Dept. and Officers really would prefer they fix their broken parking lot lights
-or have them actually come on/before sundown, instead of a few hours later- so that the customers are not in pitch black conditions when they leave a store or restaurant, for weeks or months at a time, as is currently both common and self-evident in areas all around town.
You'd think that the terrible things that have taken place at the Boca Mall -twice- would've gotten people's attention, but not property owners in HB, who just shrug their shoulders.
Taubco's property on U.S.-1 and HBB, where the very popular Argentine restaurant se llama The Knife is still located, has been a problem since at least last year.
(That area will be the focus of an upcoming post of mine, complete with photos to prove my points, called, quite simply, Thumbs Down on Hallandale Square.
I'll describe what I see as problems in that project, which Taubco got City Commission approval for in June, despite what I feel are several ominous portents in several areas.)
Supposedly, there's even a group of HB Police Officers who use bikes while patrolling -at least in the Fall or Winter- but I've personally NEVER seen them in the four-plus years I've lived here, which I think is pretty telling.
Especially given how much I get around town and the diversity of people I speak to about issues and conditions around the city.
How about a Police Chief that believes that everyone in the city should be treated fairly and equally under the law, and whose Dept. doesn't wink at city officials or staffers continually taking advantage of their position to enjoy benefits, resources or opportunities that are not open to everyone?
(Situations that I've been on top of for months, going back to last year, not only taking photographs, but also drafting letters about the incidents themself to the real law enforcement people in this state, just waiting for the right moment to simply press "Send" and "Post" on my computer.)
How about a Police Chief who has the good common sense to realize that he should NOT appear in paid political ads and literature?
Prior to coming across this Marco Eagle story last week, I'd planned on revisiting the Magill story on Monday, since it marked the sixth month anniversary of this devastating Jan. 28th article by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel's John Holland.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-flbhallandale0128sbjan28,0,2207842.story
South Florida Sun-SentinelHallandale to pay to settle one of two former police officers' lawsuitsBy John Holland
January 28, 2008
HALLANDALE BEACH - City commissioners have agreed to pay more than $100,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging Police Chief Thomas Magill falsified evidence, a city board held an illegal meeting and detectives persuaded a felon to lie under oath about a fellow officer.
Mayor Joe Cooper and attorney Alberto Milian, who represents former Hallandale Beach
Police Officer Talous Cirilo, confirmed the city's settlement with Cirilo but would not comment further, citing a confidentiality agreement. However, Cooper said the payment was more than $100,000, including attorney fees.
"I'd love to talk about this and tell people what happened, but unfortunately I can't," Cooper said.
Magill referred questions to City Attorney David Jove, who could not be reached for comment.
The settlement comes less than two months after Cirilo filed two lawsuits against the city, alleging wrongdoing in the department and City Hall. Hallandale officials fired Cirilo, alleging excessive use of force, even though a jury acquitted him on battery charges.
Cooper said the secrecy is warranted because a separate lawsuit, filed in federal court by former acting Police Sgt. Mary Hagopian, has not been settled. She promised to speak about the settlement at a later date "if I'm allowed to."
Magill and City Manager Mike Good fired the officers two years ago after prosecutors charged them with misdemeanor battery on prisoner Michael Brack. Early on April 1, 2005, Brack beat his brother as they fought in a moving car, then attacked officers who tried to intervene, according to arrest records and police reports.
Months after the arrest, a civilian employee said Cirilo choked and used a Taser device excessively on Brack.
More than a year later, the State Attorney's Office charged Cirilo with three misdemeanor battery counts. Hagopian was charged with a misdemeanor for using the stun gun on Brack as he struggled with officers in a jail holding area.
Defense lawyers said Magill orchestrated the charges as part of a vendetta against Hagopian and to show his bosses at City Hall he was a disciplinarian. Testimony at trial showed police employees mishandled two key pieces of evidence - a video surveillance tape and software from the Taser - distorting the confrontation between the officers and Brack, defense lawyers argued.
Prosecutors tried the officers separately, but jurors reached the same conclusion, acquitting them after about 15 minutes of deliberation.
After the acquittals, the officers tried to get their jobs back, but Magill and city officials refused.
In one of the lawsuits, Milian accused the city civil service board of holding an illegal meeting outside City Hall on Oct. 9, 2007, one week before a scheduled hearing on the reinstatement.
Florida law mandates that all meetings be advertised and prohibits public officials from meeting out of the public eye or discussing cases with each other. At least six board members met and discussed the meeting in a "knowing violation" of the law, according to the lawsuit.
Good, the city manager, could not be reached for comment.
Hagopian, a 15-year veteran, and Cirilo, on the force for five years, hired different lawyers and filed in different jurisdictions but made the same argument: Magill pressured his internal affairs officers and detectives to manipulate evidence and coerce false statements out of Brack so he could fire the officers and enhance his image as a reformer.
Magill used public money to have officers track down Brack on a Louisiana oil barge, where he ended up after leaving Broward County and forfeiting his bail, both lawsuits assert.
The State Attorney's office dropped all the assault charges against Brack, including the attack on his brother, then used him to testify against the officers.
The chief temporarily assigned several officers to internal affairs without any training, for the sole purpose of building a false case against the officers, Hagopian's lawyer Rhea Grossman said in court papers.
Magill sparked criminal charges against Hagopian "by preparing directly or at his direction police reports containing false or misleading information," Grossman wrote. Both lawsuits contend Magill elicited false testimony and compiled misleading evidence that he took directly to prosecutors.
U.S. District Judge William J. Zloch tossed out four counts last month, saying they belong in state court. He refused to dismiss two others, including one alleging Magill presented false information to prosecutors so Hagopian would be arrested. Zloch also let stand a charge that the city had a policy of not training internal affairs officers that, Hagopian argued, "encourages fabricated evidence for the sole purpose of allowing the whims of its police chief to terminate employees."
Milian said last week that the jury's quick acquittals proved the charges were bogus.
"This case was an abomination from the very beginning, and good officers were hurt," Milian said. "It could ultimately have a chilling effect on officers who want to protect themselves and their colleagues but are afraid because they could get in the same type of situation."
John Holland can be reached at jholland@sun-sentinel.com or at 954-385-7909.__________________________________
Reader comments at:
http://www.topix.net/forum/source/south-florida-sun-sentinel/TFKNF9QNQ3I7NHLQE
Since it appeared in the Sun-Sentinel six months ago, the subject has never once appeared in the Miami Herald.
That's very curious wouldn'y you say?
Continuing with that particular theme, later today I'll finally be posting the entire contents of my letter to Herald Executive Editor Anders Gyllenhaal, Herald Broward AME Patricia Andrews and the Herald's sometime ombudsman Edward Schumacher-Matos, about their local news coverage. Portions of that were recently printed by Henry Gomez at his Herald Watch blog, http://heraldwatch.blogspot.com/
On Monday night, Magill took his name out of consideration for the Marco Island position.
See Marco police chief candidate withdraws leaving four applicants vying for position
By Kelly Farrell, Updated 08:16 p.m., July 28, 2008
http://www.marconews.com/news/2008/jul/28/marco-island-police-chief-candidate-withdraws-leav/
Along the lines of what I've written above, consider the following, taking place in Memphis, the city where my family and I lived for three years before we came to South Florida in the summer of 1968:
Memphis Commercial Appeal
Police director sues for critical bloggers' names
Site popular with citizens, officers
By Amos Maki
July 22, 2008
Memphis Police Director Larry Godwin and the city of Memphis have filed a lawsuit to learn who operates a blog harshly critical of Godwin and his department.
The lawsuit asks AOL to produce all information related to the identity of an e-mail address linked to MPD Enforcer 2.0, a blog popular with police officers that has been extremely critical of police leadership at 201 Poplar.
To see the rest of the story, see:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/jul/22/police-director-sues-find-identity-blogger-critica/
_______________________
http://www.marconews.com/news/2008/jul/21/5-finalists-named-marco-police-chief/
Marco Eagle
Five applicants remain in running for Marco Island police chief
By KELLY FARRELL
July 21, 2008
Making it to the final five is no fantasy for the remaining candidates vying for the position of Marco Island police chief.
A towering stack of nearly 250 resumes for the position has been narrowed down to the top five applicants by City Manager Steve Thompson. The position pays a maximum salary of $103,364 plus a fringe benefit allowance.
Two applicants are from within the Marco Island Police Department including acting Chief Thom Carr and Officer Ed Stenzel.
"I knew this position was desirable but you've got some heavy guns there competing ... I'm elated that the city manager put me in the group with them," Carr said.
While this will be Carr's first interview for a police chief position, two of the other candidates, Nicholas Kaiser of Troy, N.Y., and Thomas Magill of Hallandale Beach, have at least four years experience as police chiefs in their current departments.
Magill, 54 has been chief of the Hallandale Beach Police Department in Broward County since January 2004 and has worked for the department since 1974. He is the third generation of Magills in law enforcement, he said.
Magill was in meetings until 9 p.m., Monday, and first learned that he was among the top five contenders when contacted by the Eagle.
"I was smiling from ear to ear," he said, after he read the e-mail during a break in his meeting.
Although he was honored to be considered among five successful candidates, he said the decision to leave Hallandale isn't an easy one.
"I love Hallandale with all my heart ... (My leaving) is done out of love. I want all my friends to have the opportunity to succeed like I have succeeded," Magill said of his coworkers in Hallandale.
Magill said he sees himself as a police officer before a chief.
"I may be a police chief but I'm still a police officer. I wouldn't ask another police officer to do anything I wouldn't do myself," he said.
Magill plans to visit Marco Island prior to an interview in the next couple weeks to become further familiarized with the island, which he visits frequently. He recalls a photograph of his children sitting on the mermaid statue at the Marco Island Marriott from one of his first visits many years ago.Kaiser, 60, has a condominium in Port Charlotte purchased last year and has visited Southwest Florida but says he has few other state or local ties. He is the Troy, N.Y. police chief and the department is about four times the size of the Marco Island Police Department with 122 sworn officers and a $14 million budget.
The Marco Island Police Department has 32 sworn officers and a $3.9 million budget.
Kaiser said learning Florida laws will not be an "insurmountable challenge" and his priorities would include community policing and providing a high quality of life on Marco Island.
"I'd look at the crime problems ... Doesn't seem like you have many," he added.
Marco Island's violent crime rate is one-tenth of the national average and property crime rate one-third the national average, according to the FBI Report of Offenses Known to Law Enforcement.
Carr has been the acting chief since Roger Reinke became Naples' assistant city manager in May. Carr started his career in Indianapolis and is one of the original members of the Marco Island Police Department, formed nine years ago.
"I've been preparing for this since the department has been here," Carr said.
He added that he was not surprised to see Stenzel among the final five. Stenzel did not return phone calls to comment.
" ... (Stenzel) is very qualified and I encouraged him to apply," Carr said, adding that it would not be awkward if he became second in command to Stenzel upon completion of the interviews Aug. 1.
Stenzel, currently a patrolman, has 38 years of law enforcement experience including two years prior experience as assistant chief of police in Milwaukee, Wis.
He has nearly as many years experience in law enforcement as the youngest of the five candidates has in years of life.
The youngest, Edward Preston, 40 originally from Bradenton is currently the deputy chief of police for the New Bern Police Department in North Carolina. He described New Bern as an area similar to "Southwest Florida in the early '80s."
Preston added, "This is an opportunity to move back to where I'm from. I only applied for one job. This is it."
Preston, a Persian Gulf War veteran of the Marine Corps, said he is eager to learn the "vision" that citizens, department heads and the city manager has for the police department.
All five candidates will be interviewed Aug. 1 The interview panel will be made up of the city's five department directors and Chief Rob Petrovich from the City of Cape Coral, who Thompson said came highly recommended from other area city managers.
"I have as many questions for (the panel) as folks will probably have for me," Preston said.
Read Thomas A. Magill's resume (.pdf)
____________________________
Feeling the very negative way that I do about Hallandale Beach Police Chief Thomas Magill, I genuinely hoped that Marco Island would've been foolish enough to hire him, so that he could get
out of Dodge as soon as possible.
Then, the residents of the City of Hallandale Beach could've finally had a long overdue public airing about what sorts of qualities they're looking for in a Police Chief, and the sorts of policies its residents want to see their new top cop pursue.
Maybe select someone who, unlike Magill, actually thinks that having a regular daily police presence along the public beach is a good idea, esp. on weekends, and beer-y obvious three-day holiday weekends in particular.
It not only would give peace of mind to HB residents and visitors enjoying themselves, but also
greatly relieve the strain and anxiety of the (contractor) lifeguards out there, who have long felt they're out-manned, and already have a tough job to do when its crowded.
Who knows, perhaps a police presence at the beach on a more regular basis might actively discourage people from using the mesh aluminum benches as grills -even to the point of placing charcoal on them- and thinking they'll get away with it -again.
(With obvious physical damage to the bench.)
Maybe a more consistent police presence at the beach would also discourage throngs of kids from Miramar High School from coming over after school during the school year, and, as happened a few months ago, choosing to settle some beef at school by coming over here and having a huge fight in the HB beach parking garage, with things being trashed left and right.
(Not that the Herald or Sun-Sentinel ever wrote about the incident.)
Perhaps a new HB Police Chief would think that actually having directional signs somewhere in the city indicating the physical location of the HB Police Dept. is a good idea, since as has been stated here before, there currently are NO such signs anywhere in the city. Really.
Who knows, maybe he'd even want to see a couple of directional signs at the city's busiest intersection -and the city's choke point- of U.S.-1 and Hallandale Beach Blvd., as is commonplace in most towns, large and small, in this country.
Honestly, why do you suppose that all the folks from Hollywood City Hall were so taken aback at the location confusion when they came down for the joint City Commission meeting a few weeks back? It's no big mystery. Lack of proper signage!(If you don't believe me, just ask them yourself. How do you suppose I know? They told me.)
Maybe HB can even hire a Police Chief who thinks it's a good idea for his Officers to take the initiative when they see long stretches of street lights out at night for more than a day or two, and collect that info somewhere when their shift ends, so that someone in the city will actually do something about it the next morning.
As opposed to the current reality of them either completely ignoring the public safety problem
for months at a time, as has been apparent for years, or, simply putting it in a "Quarterly Report" that practically nobody will ever read.
Who knows, maybe we can even get someone in charge who thinks that it'll be comforting to residents and taxpayers alike to have a regular police presence at that choke point of U.S.-1 and HBB, so that cars "in the block" actually get ticketed, as they would in Aventura, but never are in HB.
Maybe HB can even select a new Police Chief who takes the initiative to actually discourage crimes of opportunity from happening in the first place, by telling commercial property/strip mall owners that his Police Dept. and Officers really would prefer they fix their broken parking lot lights
-or have them actually come on/before sundown, instead of a few hours later- so that the customers are not in pitch black conditions when they leave a store or restaurant, for weeks or months at a time, as is currently both common and self-evident in areas all around town.
You'd think that the terrible things that have taken place at the Boca Mall -twice- would've gotten people's attention, but not property owners in HB, who just shrug their shoulders.
Taubco's property on U.S.-1 and HBB, where the very popular Argentine restaurant se llama The Knife is still located, has been a problem since at least last year.
(That area will be the focus of an upcoming post of mine, complete with photos to prove my points, called, quite simply, Thumbs Down on Hallandale Square.
I'll describe what I see as problems in that project, which Taubco got City Commission approval for in June, despite what I feel are several ominous portents in several areas.)
Supposedly, there's even a group of HB Police Officers who use bikes while patrolling -at least in the Fall or Winter- but I've personally NEVER seen them in the four-plus years I've lived here, which I think is pretty telling.
Especially given how much I get around town and the diversity of people I speak to about issues and conditions around the city.
How about a Police Chief that believes that everyone in the city should be treated fairly and equally under the law, and whose Dept. doesn't wink at city officials or staffers continually taking advantage of their position to enjoy benefits, resources or opportunities that are not open to everyone?
(Situations that I've been on top of for months, going back to last year, not only taking photographs, but also drafting letters about the incidents themself to the real law enforcement people in this state, just waiting for the right moment to simply press "Send" and "Post" on my computer.)
How about a Police Chief who has the good common sense to realize that he should NOT appear in paid political ads and literature?
Prior to coming across this Marco Eagle story last week, I'd planned on revisiting the Magill story on Monday, since it marked the sixth month anniversary of this devastating Jan. 28th article by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel's John Holland.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-flbhallandale0128sbjan28,0,2207842.story
South Florida Sun-SentinelHallandale to pay to settle one of two former police officers' lawsuitsBy John Holland
January 28, 2008
HALLANDALE BEACH - City commissioners have agreed to pay more than $100,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging Police Chief Thomas Magill falsified evidence, a city board held an illegal meeting and detectives persuaded a felon to lie under oath about a fellow officer.
Mayor Joe Cooper and attorney Alberto Milian, who represents former Hallandale Beach
Police Officer Talous Cirilo, confirmed the city's settlement with Cirilo but would not comment further, citing a confidentiality agreement. However, Cooper said the payment was more than $100,000, including attorney fees.
"I'd love to talk about this and tell people what happened, but unfortunately I can't," Cooper said.
Magill referred questions to City Attorney David Jove, who could not be reached for comment.
The settlement comes less than two months after Cirilo filed two lawsuits against the city, alleging wrongdoing in the department and City Hall. Hallandale officials fired Cirilo, alleging excessive use of force, even though a jury acquitted him on battery charges.
Cooper said the secrecy is warranted because a separate lawsuit, filed in federal court by former acting Police Sgt. Mary Hagopian, has not been settled. She promised to speak about the settlement at a later date "if I'm allowed to."
Magill and City Manager Mike Good fired the officers two years ago after prosecutors charged them with misdemeanor battery on prisoner Michael Brack. Early on April 1, 2005, Brack beat his brother as they fought in a moving car, then attacked officers who tried to intervene, according to arrest records and police reports.
Months after the arrest, a civilian employee said Cirilo choked and used a Taser device excessively on Brack.
More than a year later, the State Attorney's Office charged Cirilo with three misdemeanor battery counts. Hagopian was charged with a misdemeanor for using the stun gun on Brack as he struggled with officers in a jail holding area.
Defense lawyers said Magill orchestrated the charges as part of a vendetta against Hagopian and to show his bosses at City Hall he was a disciplinarian. Testimony at trial showed police employees mishandled two key pieces of evidence - a video surveillance tape and software from the Taser - distorting the confrontation between the officers and Brack, defense lawyers argued.
Prosecutors tried the officers separately, but jurors reached the same conclusion, acquitting them after about 15 minutes of deliberation.
After the acquittals, the officers tried to get their jobs back, but Magill and city officials refused.
In one of the lawsuits, Milian accused the city civil service board of holding an illegal meeting outside City Hall on Oct. 9, 2007, one week before a scheduled hearing on the reinstatement.
Florida law mandates that all meetings be advertised and prohibits public officials from meeting out of the public eye or discussing cases with each other. At least six board members met and discussed the meeting in a "knowing violation" of the law, according to the lawsuit.
Good, the city manager, could not be reached for comment.
Hagopian, a 15-year veteran, and Cirilo, on the force for five years, hired different lawyers and filed in different jurisdictions but made the same argument: Magill pressured his internal affairs officers and detectives to manipulate evidence and coerce false statements out of Brack so he could fire the officers and enhance his image as a reformer.
Magill used public money to have officers track down Brack on a Louisiana oil barge, where he ended up after leaving Broward County and forfeiting his bail, both lawsuits assert.
The State Attorney's office dropped all the assault charges against Brack, including the attack on his brother, then used him to testify against the officers.
The chief temporarily assigned several officers to internal affairs without any training, for the sole purpose of building a false case against the officers, Hagopian's lawyer Rhea Grossman said in court papers.
Magill sparked criminal charges against Hagopian "by preparing directly or at his direction police reports containing false or misleading information," Grossman wrote. Both lawsuits contend Magill elicited false testimony and compiled misleading evidence that he took directly to prosecutors.
U.S. District Judge William J. Zloch tossed out four counts last month, saying they belong in state court. He refused to dismiss two others, including one alleging Magill presented false information to prosecutors so Hagopian would be arrested. Zloch also let stand a charge that the city had a policy of not training internal affairs officers that, Hagopian argued, "encourages fabricated evidence for the sole purpose of allowing the whims of its police chief to terminate employees."
Milian said last week that the jury's quick acquittals proved the charges were bogus.
"This case was an abomination from the very beginning, and good officers were hurt," Milian said. "It could ultimately have a chilling effect on officers who want to protect themselves and their colleagues but are afraid because they could get in the same type of situation."
John Holland can be reached at jholland@sun-sentinel.com or at 954-385-7909.__________________________________
Reader comments at:
http://www.topix.net/forum/source/south-florida-sun-sentinel/TFKNF9QNQ3I7NHLQE
Since it appeared in the Sun-Sentinel six months ago, the subject has never once appeared in the Miami Herald.
That's very curious wouldn'y you say?
Continuing with that particular theme, later today I'll finally be posting the entire contents of my letter to Herald Executive Editor Anders Gyllenhaal, Herald Broward AME Patricia Andrews and the Herald's sometime ombudsman Edward Schumacher-Matos, about their local news coverage. Portions of that were recently printed by Henry Gomez at his Herald Watch blog, http://heraldwatch.blogspot.com/
On Monday night, Magill took his name out of consideration for the Marco Island position.
See Marco police chief candidate withdraws leaving four applicants vying for position
By Kelly Farrell, Updated 08:16 p.m., July 28, 2008
http://www.marconews.com/news/2008/jul/28/marco-island-police-chief-candidate-withdraws-leav/
Along the lines of what I've written above, consider the following, taking place in Memphis, the city where my family and I lived for three years before we came to South Florida in the summer of 1968:
Memphis Commercial Appeal
Police director sues for critical bloggers' names
Site popular with citizens, officers
By Amos Maki
July 22, 2008
Memphis Police Director Larry Godwin and the city of Memphis have filed a lawsuit to learn who operates a blog harshly critical of Godwin and his department.
The lawsuit asks AOL to produce all information related to the identity of an e-mail address linked to MPD Enforcer 2.0, a blog popular with police officers that has been extremely critical of police leadership at 201 Poplar.
To see the rest of the story, see:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/jul/22/police-director-sues-find-identity-blogger-critica/
