Once-fired Minneapolis police officer promoted to department training director

[WhiskeyGrinder]

https://www.startribune.com/once-fired-minneapolis-police-officer-promoted-to-department-training-director/600143838/



David Garman was one of several officials with checkered pasts who have been elevated by interim Chief Huffman.

A police officer who once was fired for his role in the seizure of cellphones during a raid but later reinstated has been placed in charge of all training for Minneapolis police. David Garman was also sued by a family for his part in a raid by the city's now-defunct Metro Gang Strike Force that led to a city payout of $16,000.

Garman, a former Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) Officer of the Year, is among several officers with blemished records who were recently elevated to leadership positions by interim Police Chief Amelia Huffman. Their promotions were listed in an internal e-mail circulated within the department.

(snip)

The development comes as the department finds itself embroiled in a new controversy, the fatal police shooting of 22-year-old Amir Locke during a no-knock warrant operation last week at a downtown Minneapolis apartment.

In his new role, Garman will oversee training for all incoming rookies as well as current officers. But his appointment drew harsh criticism from Communities United Against Police Brutality, a local watchdog group.

Looks like Reform(TM) is coming along swimmingly.

[The Magistrate]

1. This Is Just Pathetic

[WhiskeyGrinder]

2. But wait, there's more!

Huffman (current interim chief, also being considered for permanent role) introduced three of the appointees at the January news conference. She left six appointees out of the announcement, including Garman and three others who appear to have run afoul of the department on several occasions.

(snip)
Garman was fired by then-Police Chief Tim Dolan in 2009 for his role in a case involving the Metro Gang Strike Force, a unit of metro-area officers that was shut down after revelations of misconduct, including mistreatment of people of color and officers keeping confiscated property for their personal use.

Garman's termination involved a drug house raid in which he and three other Strike Force officers found narcotics and seized at least three cellphones. A fourth Minneapolis officer on the unit involved in the case used the phones.

An internal department investigation found that Garman and two other officers had helped cover up the cellphone use, according to sources at the time.

Garman's termination was headed for arbitration in 2010 when the Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis brokered a deal with the department allowing him to receive back pay for all but 30 hours of the seven months he was off MPD's rolls, according to John Delmonico, then president of the federation.

Dolan never disclosed why he rescinded Garman's termination, and Garman has been an influential figure within the Police Federation, where he has served as the union's treasurer and vice president.

He also was named in a 2009 lawsuit over the Strike Force's raid of a house in south Minneapolis after he had allegedly applied for a search warrant. According to the suit, up to 20 officers broke windows, ordered two women to the floor at gunpoint, repeatedly used expletives, destroyed personal property and damaged walls and ceilings.

(snip)

Among the promotions Huffman announced last month was Robert Berry, who was named Third Precinct dogwatch lieutenant. In 2007, Berry was fired for ethical violations, including failure to notify authorities about the misconduct of another officer who was driving drunk.

Berry, who was also barhopping, was reinstated by order of an arbitrator who ruled that he had not been on duty at the time of the incident as department officials had alleged. Berry's termination was reduced to a 40 hour suspension without pay.

In 2019, he was suspended for 60 hours without pay for his 2017 conviction of misdemeanor domestic assault in Hastings. A court placed him on probation for one year, according to a document from the Minneapolis Office of Police Conduct Review and a notice of discipline signed by Arradondo.

It goes on and on.

[The Magistrate]

3. Someone Is Going To Have To Bite The Bullet And Endure A Police Strike

I do not go so far as you on the matter of abolition, but certainly destruction of police unions in their current form would do a great deal of good. These seem to exist primarily to shield officers from consequences for criminal and abusive behavior. Lack of meaningful consequences for bad behavior guarantees it will not just persist but prevail. Gresham's Law, that bad money drives out good, applies well beyond economics. Toleration of bad behavior drives out good behavior in any organization. 'Letting off steam' is tempting, it feels good, and unless there is something beyond a personal code to weigh against the pleasurable release, it will be indulged in more and more often. Not everyone has a personal code, not a respectable one anyway....

[WhiskeyGrinder]

4. Hee, you know I want to dismantle it all -- but doing so through the union is a dangerous path, IMO.

Wisconsin taught us just how quickly public unions can be dismantled, as well as the repercussions that holds for private-sector unions. Any attempt to weaken or dismantle cop unions, especially from Democrats, would be carefully studied to determine how to wield it against teachers, municipal workers, etc. I often say we can't be afraid to act because we worry about the right's reaction, but when it comes to suggestions of attacking cop unions, I do fear what those tactics could lead to.

Besides, cop unions enshrine and protect the culture of the police; they're not the source of it.

[The Magistrate]

5. I Agree They Are Not The Source Of The Culture

But the enshrining and protection of the culture certainly helps perpetuate it.

I have no objection to unionized police, merely to unions that whose chief function is to shield criminal behavior.

[Ocelot II]

6. Headline above the fold in this morning's hard copy Strib:

MPD's new top trainer once fired. I sure hope somebody is paying attention - why the hell this guy even kept his job,* let alone got this one, is just beyond me. Isn't there anyone at MPD with a clean record who could take this position? This is fucked up.

*The police union is why, of course; their whole function seems to be to be sure bad cops keep their jobs.