Chief Bellamy as Victim

Jerry Bledsoe continues to be on vacation, and there is no new installment of his series in today's Rhino.

It has been well known for some time that the City of Greensboro has begun its process of selecting a new permanent police chief.  I do not recall whether Interim Chief Tim Bellamy has become a candidate.

In some respects, this particular position is unenviable.  It will not be possible for the person filling this position to even remotely keep all of the stakeholders satisfied, particularly in a city like Greensboro.  And the person will assume leadership of a department that has been quite troubled from a number of standpoints.  I have previously made the case that it would be best to hire someone from out-of-town, and preferably a solid African-American who is very tough on crime.  It will be very difficult for a Caucasian officer to run the department and to vigorously fight crime because of the hostile political/media environment in Greensboro.

In any case, it is important to revisit the City Attorney's report on the GPD matter.   Interim Chief Bellamy is mentioned numerous times in the report, which presented a unilateral case that the City of Greensboro had engaged in multiple, serious acts of discrimination against black officers in the GPD.

Bellamy is listed as being among the several dozen individuals who were interviewed when the report was prepared.   Consider the following:

1. Bellamy was mentioned also in the report as having sighted an unidentified black male driving an unmarked police car in an area known for prostitution.  Remember, there was some question as to whether this may have been Lt. James Hinson driving the car.  The report makes a distinct effort to disavow that Bellamy meant to suggest that Hinson was the driver.

2. Bellamy was also described as being present at the meeting with police union members during which David Wray was alleged to have breached personnel confidentiality.  The report also indicates Wray represented Lt. Hinson was involved in a drug cartel and linked to two murders.   That is what the City Attorney's report essentially says about the meeting.

3. One officer in the department was cited for making an improper arrest, and there was some question as to whether the action constituted criminal assault.  Bellamy was stated to have advocated against a criminal investigation sought by Wray after initial input had been received that there was no assault. 

4. The actions of a certain white officer were cited to demonstrate that Lt. Hinson had been subjected to disparate treatment.   It was suggested that the white officer was treated more leniently than Hinson.  Bellamy was the bureau commander for this white officer.  It was alleged that he was unaware of the investigation, and that he was not allowed input into the discipline chosen.  The report suggested this was inappropriate, and that it happened because of his race.

5. The report also discusses the  "informal meetings" of former Chief Wray's command staff at the K&W Cafeteria.  It was alleged that Bellamy and other high-ranking black officers were excluded from these meetings.  This was cited as part of the overall theme of discrimination suggested in the report.

6. A bold subheading in the report indicates, "Intentional Exclusion of Asst. Chief Bellamy from Participation in Matters Concerning Subordinate Officers in his Chain of Command".    This section once again cited his exclusion from the aforementioned investigation and discipline of a white officer under his command.  Also, it mentions that he was not called one night when an officer under his command was shot.   Finally, it indicates he was most recently Lt. Hinson's commander, but had not been made aware of the Special Intelligence investigation of Hinson. 

7. The report expressed concern that these actions "undermined Bellamy's authority and that Bellamy was not being allowed to be fully in charge of his command."   The section ends by stating that "Asst. Chief Bellamy reported that he and Asst. Chief Stevenson (African-American) were routinely excluded from operational meetings, e.g., budget meetings, that affected the operation of their bureau commands."  Ironically, Stevenson recently was disciplined after Bellamy's investigation into the GPD matter as Interim Chief; but she was previously represented by Bellamy as being another victim of discrimination, according to the report.

This is a fairly significant list of grievances Bellamy could have had against Wray's leadership.  The merits of these grievances are suspect in my mind.  I think it is not unusual for top leaders in the corporate world to make decisions affecting individual employees without involving their managers.   We can debate about whether this should take place, but the reality is that it does; and it is not necessarily evidence  of wrongdoing.  Cliques form in the corporate world, and this also is not necessarily evidence of wrongdoing.

But in any case,  all of these slights and exclusions Bellamy experienced somehow were communicated to the two assistant city attorneys preparing the report.   This raises certain questions.

Who communicated these grievances to the authors of the report?  Was it some third party who was in a position to know all of these circumstances without Bellamy having communicated them to anyone?  Was it Bellamy who reported these things?  Or did Bellamy share this information with a third party, who then presented it to the two assistant city attorneys?

Finally, if Bellamy was involved in sharing these grievances, what was the motive?

These are important questions.  If he is to be a candidate for the permanent Chief's position, these questions need to be answered, and the answers need to be made public. 

On an unrelated matter, it should also be noted that Interim Chief Bellamy has been previously reported elsewhere to be a cousin of City Council member Diane Bellamy-Small, whose copy of the RMA report was reported to have been leaked to the media. 

In view of this previously reported family relationship, and the high level of responsibility and accountability associated with the Chief's position, it would only be appropriate that Ms. Bellamy-Small recuse herself from any matters involving the Police Department as long as Interim Chief Bellamy is serving as chief, or if he seeks the position of permanent chief. 

If she does not recuse herself, the City Council should find some way to exclude her administratively from any matters affecting the department.  The existence of a family relationship represents a major potential conflict for a council member with respect to such an important position.

 

Comments

[jw]

"...but the reality is that it does; and it is not necessarily evidence of wrongdoing. Cliques form in the corporate world, and this also is not necessarily evidence of wrongdoing."

Burger King and Sara Lee are not charged with guarding MY safety.

[Joe Guarino]

JW, one of the interesting aspects of this question is that an alternative version of the K&W episode has been offered elsewhere that appeared to be of less concern. But is there any evidence that your safety was impacted? And, on the flip side of this question, is it possible that public safety may have been diminished when Wray's people were called off the trail they were following?

[benholder]

http://thetroublemaker.blogspot.com/2007/01/guarino-talks-timmy-talk.html

[La Ley]

" if Bellamy was involved in sharing these grievances, what was the motive? "

Virtually all of the Command Staff were summoned to the the Legal Department and ordered to answer questions or risk being fired. If Bellamy provided the information, maybe that was his motivation.DUH!

[Joe Guarino]

Thank you for the link, Ben. And what you have asserted-- that Bellamy did not want Wray forced out-- is not inconsistent with what I have heard from others.

So the question is, if what you are saying is true (and I do not necessarily disbelieve that it is), then what happened with respect to the sharing of Bellamy's story of woe and discrimination, as presented in the City Attorney's report? La Ley, you provide one potential alternative explanation; and I thank you for providing it. (I suppose there may be others.)

[Dr. Mary Johnson]

Leaving off the "DUH!", La Ley hit the nail on the head: "Virtually all of the command staff were summoned to the Legal Department and ordered to answer questions or risk being fired."

It's called coercion. And it's the reason what these officers said under those circumstances is not admissable as proof of guilt in a courtroom, and should not have found its way to the world-wide-web.

How these "confidential" (RMA/City Attorney) reports found their way into the ether is another can-of-worms for the City to explain (and probably defend in court).

The sad part is that how this story has been told from day one is now part of the story.

[benholder]

what you have asserted-- that Bellamy did not want Wray forced out-- is not inconsistent with what I have heard from others.

So the question is, if what you are saying is true (and I do not necessarily disbelieve that it is)

Joe,

Those are his words not mine. Watch the infomercial.

[Fred Gregory]

Joe,

I respectfully suggest you are mistaken to infer that a white Chief tough on crime couldn't do a good job running the GPD. You are, in a manner of speaking, falling victim to the intimidation of " idenity politics " and backing away from the lofty goal of a color blind society. What do you suggest be done with Hinson ? Jus' asking.

[Joe Guarino]

Ben, your infomercial is a lot of fun.

Fred, of course I believe a white police chief tough on crime can do an excellent job. But in Greensboro, he can only remain viable if he is reliably supported by those that hold the most clout in local politics. Absent unequivocal political support, he would be in a precarious situation. And that is a problem, given the nature of our local politics.

[Fred Gregory]

And what about the 800 pound gorilla in the room ?

[Joe Guarino]

Your question presumes a political world that makes any type of sense at all. But if Bledsoe's reporting is even remotely accurate, Hinson should have been terminated a long time ago.