Here's a follow up story from the Sun-Sentinel today:


Officials may decide next week whether to fire Belle Glade police chief




By Leon Fooksman
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

June 2, 2006



The Belle Glade police chief and a sergeant will remain suspended until at least next week -- when they will get a chance to defend their conduct in a botched shooting investigation -- before city officials will decide whether to fire them, City Manager Houston Tate said Thursday.

A town hall-style meeting will be scheduled for residents to say whether they want their Police Department to stay intact or be taken over fully or partially by the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office.

The steps come on the heels of this week's release of a scathing grand jury report that found the Police Department failed to thoroughly investigate an October shooting at a nightclub and a November attack in a store. The grand jury found so many flaws with the way Chief Albert Dowdell, Sgt. Jeffers Walker and then-Officer Leo Davis conducted their inquiries that it demanded a more thorough investigation to determine if criminal charges should be filed.

The Police Department also has come under intense scrutiny after its evidence storage was burglarized earlier this year. Two men have been arrested for stealing guns and drugs.

Problems in the Police Department aren't good for attracting businesses and residents to the downtrodden city in need of revitalization, said Ken Lutz, president of the Belle Glade Chamber of Commerce. Even before the latest troubles, many residents have complained about a lack of police enforcement following a series of home burglaries, he said.

"Nobody wants to come to a place that can't afford normal protection for people," Lutz said.

Neither Dowdell nor his attorney, Dan Paige, could be reached for comment Thursday, despite attempts by phone. Dowdell was faulted by the grand jury for using insufficient evidence to order the arrest of a man for the nightclub shooting. Charges against Darren Hatcher, 35, of Clewiston, were later dropped after he spent about 30 days in jail.

Walker failed to interview witnesses, take pictures, review security videotapes and follow other basic steps in investigating the Club 21 shooting, the grand jury report said.

The grand jury criticized Davis for "deplorable" interviewing techniques in the questioning of April Ridford, who claimed Hatcher committed the shooting. He didn't challenge her contradictions. Davis was fired in March for unauthorized use of a city vehicle, Tate said.

Tate said the grand jury report was enough to warrant the immediate suspensions of Dowdell and Walker and to recommend their termination.

"The big pieces have been done," Tate said. "This was a major decision."

Dowdell will be paid until Tuesday. After that, he will continue to be suspended without pay until the Thursday hearing on his termination. Walker will be suspended without pay until his hearing Thursday.

Leon Fooksman can be reached at lfooksman@sun-sentinel.com or 561-243-6647.