Leadership and Accountability in Law Enforcement

Who's watching the county hen house? The Matthew Coulter case exposes major holes in law enforcement and the DA's office.

Written by Pauli Halstead, Nevada City, CA.

Strong leadership is essential to engendering a culture of accountability within a Sheriff’s Department, Police Department or District Attorney’s Office. Without a culture that clearly requires accountability and emphasizes that misconduct will not be tolerated, accountability mechanisms, no matter how strong, will be undermined.  Without providing positive models of behavior through his or her own actions and within the organizational culture itself, Law Enforcement Leadership runs the risk of having all other behavioral control mechanisms become ineffective.

From the beginning of the Matthew Coulter assault incident, there has been a complete lack of leadership displayed both by Chief Gammelgard and DA Jesse Wilson. Both the Grass Valley Police and the DA’s office statements regarding the incident and the ensuing faulty investigation represent a “we can do no wrong” attitude that encourages the cutting of corners, which then creates the perception of a double standard, and undermines – both externally and within the Department – the credibility of the system.

On Sept. 1^st 2022, without having all the evidence, and before the conclusion of any meaningful investigation into the alleged assault, Matthew Coulter was arrested on false charges he initiated the attack on Mark Olsen and Mark Nelson. The two construction workers were not even considered as the assaulters.

The fact that on-scene officers did not conduct a professional investigation should have warranted disciplinary action by Chief Gammelgard. A police chief must send the message that not following Policy and Procedure will be taken seriously. The apparent irregularities in the investigation raise important questions, and the Chief should have made it clear that this incident would be fully investigated. To date, it has not.

Furthermore, ignoring those who have criticized the investigation sends the message that GVPD will protect their own rather than investigate and punish misconduct.

Chief Gammelgard’s failure to investigate irregularities in the investigation have simply served to highlight the lack of accountability. The on-scene officers should have been immediately suspended. Such measures are necessary to ensure that officers who may have engaged in questionable conduct are not on the job until those serious issues are resolved, in order to maintain the credibility of the Department in the eyes of the public.

You do not send officers who are being investigated for not following policy and procedure back to the job until the matter is cleared up. As examples, there are four civil lawsuits against the City of Grass Valley and Grass Valley PD, involving the lack of de-escalation procedures and excessive use of force:

1) The shooting death of Gabriel Strickland: (naming City of Grass Valley, Chief Gammelgard, and officers Hooper, Ball, and Grube).

2) Severe leg injury to John David Peterson while being arrested by GVPD: Officers Butler, Ball and another unnamed officer.

3)  Christopher Howie's broken leg at the jail: also naming Officer Herrera and GVPD.

4) The civil lawsuit for Phillip Hemple; thrown on the ground and severely injured by officer Coltan Duncan.

Studies show that a perception among staff of favoritism and a lack of discipline leads to more unethical behavior and corruption.  A lack of leadership involving training results in breakdowns in other areas of accountability. Without a renewed commitment to accountability from City Manager, Tim Kiser, Mayor, Jan Arbuckle, and the City Council, the situation in the Police Department will only deteriorate further.

A Police Commission, responsible for setting police policy, should be holding regular public meetings and providing a public forum to address important issues of public concern. Unfortunately, the Commission rarely takes up issues of police accountability or is otherwise responsive to public concerns about misconduct.

The current crisis in the GVPD has exposed a significant erosion of the Department’s accountability mechanisms and undermines public confidence in the police. While this presents a very real problem for the Department, it also presents a unique opportunity for policy makers to publicly demonstrate that the Department and the City are committed to a police force with strong accountability structures where misconduct will not be tolerated.

REFORMS ARE NEEDED

Reform 1: Strong Leadership

Significant policy changes are needed to address the problems that have been brought to light in the Matthew Coulter case. The erroneous and disturbing public statements, made to The Union by on-scene officers, alleging that Matthew Coulter initiated the assault and “brandished” an orange box cutter, are lies the PD needs to publicly correct. The failure of the City Manager to suspend Chief Gammelgard and the other officers until all this gets sorted out, perpetuates the perception that there is no accountability, which is bound to have a lasting negative effect on the City.

Reform 2: Compliance and Cooperation

The Office of Citizen Complaints is the organization charged with investigating complaints filed by members of the public. A General Order must be complied with and strictly enforced.

Reform 3: Early Warning System

There needs to be an early warning system that identifies officers who are noncompliant with POST training and the Policy and Procedure Manual.

Reform 4: Automatic Disciplinary Investigation Triggers

The failure for discipline is disturbing as is the failure of Supervisors to look critically at cases of misconduct despite repeated violations of departmental policies. Probationary employees should not remain employees of the Department if they have significant disciplinary problems. Serious misconduct should be automatically referred for discipline.

Reform 5: Whistleblower Protections

The code of silence and fear of reprisals for reporting misconduct or criticizing department practice or policy prevents honest police officers from reporting violations and only serves to shield those who commit misconduct. An environment needs to be fostered within the Department where officers are also obligated to report misconduct.

Reform 6: Promotions

Promoting officers despite significant discipline histories sends the wrong message both to rank and file officers and to the public about the values the Department promotes.

• To what extent is disciplinary history considered in determining promotions?

• To what extent are civil suits considered?

• To what extent are violations of defendants’ Constitutional rights considered?

Reform 7: Make Police Commission Accountable

Finally, measures aimed at making the Police Commission more accountable to the public should be adopted. There needs to be mechanisms in place to ensure that the Commission consistently hears and acts on issues of public concern.

Pauli Halstead

Nevada City