09-13-2007, 09:12 PM
The Miami Civilian Investigative Panel, a 13-member city board charged with investigating complaints of police misconduct, will investigate the activities of Miami Police Chief John Timoney.
The Miami City Commission almost assigned the task to a special committee Tuesday, but instead bestowed it upon the CIP after a short discussion. The CIP is comprised of 12 Miami citizens appointed by the City Commission and one member, retired police officer Otis Davis, appointed by Timoney.
The commission also determined Tuesday that the city will not provide the chief with legal representation in any new or pending Florida Department of Law Enforcement or Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics and the Public Trust investigation.
FDLE reportedly launched an investigation this week after Miami Police Department Internal Affairs investigators decided they were too conflicted about investigating Timoney themselves. The chief never disclosed that he had been driving a Lexus SUV for a year given to him for free by Lexus of Kendall.
City Manager Pedro Hernandez considered forming a committee to look into the allegations against Timoney, as suggested by Armando Aguilar, president of the Fraternal Order of Police. Eighty percent of the police officers voted ?no confidence? in the leadership of Timoney and Deputy Chief Frank Fernandez in a Sept. 4 union election after the Lexus scandal surfaced.
Many city officials and residents expected Hernandez to reprimand Timoney on Tuesday, but he didn?t. Instead, Hernandez said he?d wait for the results of an ethics commission investigation. At that, Commissioner Marc Sarnoff said he would call for Hernandez?s resignation if Timoney wasn?t punished.
Sarnoff has asked Timoney to donate to charity the value of the car use, which he estimates to be around $7,000, and write a letter of apology to the city, he said in an interview last week.
?A committee is not appropriate for the FDLE to report to,? Hernandez said. ?The police department is under the oversight of the city manager.?
Aguilar then vowed to file a complaint with the CIP. ?Allow the CIP to do what it?s set out to do,? Commissioner Joe Sanchez said.
Miami City Attorney Jorge Fernández warned that the CIP could not get in the way of law enforcement investigations. The CIP may only ?exercise its powers so as not to interfere with any onging investigation,? Fernández read from the city code.
?They know they will not interfere if FDLE is conducting an investigation,? said Sanchez, a former member of the Florida Highway Patrol.
Charles Mays, the CIP?s independent legal counsel, told the SunPost that any potential conflict would depend on the nature of the FDLE investigation.
?We are concerned with any evidence of misconduct,? Mays said.
The Miami City Commission almost assigned the task to a special committee Tuesday, but instead bestowed it upon the CIP after a short discussion. The CIP is comprised of 12 Miami citizens appointed by the City Commission and one member, retired police officer Otis Davis, appointed by Timoney.
The commission also determined Tuesday that the city will not provide the chief with legal representation in any new or pending Florida Department of Law Enforcement or Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics and the Public Trust investigation.
FDLE reportedly launched an investigation this week after Miami Police Department Internal Affairs investigators decided they were too conflicted about investigating Timoney themselves. The chief never disclosed that he had been driving a Lexus SUV for a year given to him for free by Lexus of Kendall.
City Manager Pedro Hernandez considered forming a committee to look into the allegations against Timoney, as suggested by Armando Aguilar, president of the Fraternal Order of Police. Eighty percent of the police officers voted ?no confidence? in the leadership of Timoney and Deputy Chief Frank Fernandez in a Sept. 4 union election after the Lexus scandal surfaced.
Many city officials and residents expected Hernandez to reprimand Timoney on Tuesday, but he didn?t. Instead, Hernandez said he?d wait for the results of an ethics commission investigation. At that, Commissioner Marc Sarnoff said he would call for Hernandez?s resignation if Timoney wasn?t punished.
Sarnoff has asked Timoney to donate to charity the value of the car use, which he estimates to be around $7,000, and write a letter of apology to the city, he said in an interview last week.
?A committee is not appropriate for the FDLE to report to,? Hernandez said. ?The police department is under the oversight of the city manager.?
Aguilar then vowed to file a complaint with the CIP. ?Allow the CIP to do what it?s set out to do,? Commissioner Joe Sanchez said.
Miami City Attorney Jorge Fernández warned that the CIP could not get in the way of law enforcement investigations. The CIP may only ?exercise its powers so as not to interfere with any onging investigation,? Fernández read from the city code.
?They know they will not interfere if FDLE is conducting an investigation,? said Sanchez, a former member of the Florida Highway Patrol.
Charles Mays, the CIP?s independent legal counsel, told the SunPost that any potential conflict would depend on the nature of the FDLE investigation.
?We are concerned with any evidence of misconduct,? Mays said.