Mayor Keith Gaskin on Friday vetoed a city council decision to assign two police officers to community service for getting into an altercation in front of the Municipal Complex.
At Chief Joseph Daughtry’s recommendation, the council voted 5-0 in executive session Tuesday to assign the officers to 40 hours each of community service, to be completed off-duty. Daughtry originally intended to recommend suspensions without pay for the officers, Ward 5 Councilman Stephen Jones told The Dispatch, but softened his position before Tuesday’s meeting.
“What better fit than the guys going into the middle school and high school and talking about conflict resolution?” Daughtry told The Dispatch on Friday, indicating the specific service the officers would perform. “We’re an alpha male profession. These guys are seeing dead bodies. They’re dealing with victims of crimes. They’re dealing with people at their worst. They’re human.”
Gaskin issued his veto Friday morning but did not share a copy of it with The Dispatch since it deals with the details of a personnel matter.
“It is a very serious personnel matter that I felt like wasn’t handled properly,” he said.
Jones took to Facebook criticizing the veto, calling it “political maneuvering.” He also accused Gaskin of using his veto power out of “personal dislike,” labeling that “both immature and divisive.”
He told The Dispatch on Friday the council would likely call a special meeting next week, possibly as early as Monday, to override the veto.
“First of all, it was a 5-0 vote,” Jones said. “You should have made the recommendation that night to table it … if you were that upset about it.”
Daughtry acknowledged the altercation occurred in November. Since then, the officers have gotten “past it” and have continued working together without incident.
While the scuffle violated department policy and Daughtry said he doesn’t condone the behavior, he thinks the proposed punishment was well-suited.
“It wasn’t like it was a street brawl,” Daughtry said. “If it was major, then we’d deal with it majorly. But it wasn’t nothing major. … Think about it. Who needs the help? The kids. So, on their own time, they’re going to talk to the kids. I think it’s very creative.”
Jones agrees the altercation wasn’t that serious, and the community service discipline is “a great idea.” The two officers had otherwise clean records, as far as he knew, he said. He didn’t think it was right to “throw the hammer down” on their first offense.
Gaskin’s veto, on the other hand, could do real damage, Jones said.
“I think it says a lot to these officers that we’re even bickering over it,” Jones said. “Or it might hurt the morale of the whole department.”
‘I know it’s personal’
Daughtry believes Gaskin’s veto is a personal dig, and he opened up to The Dispatch about how he perceives his and the mayor’s relationship.
“I know he don’t like me,” said Daughtry, who became police chief in December 2022. “I know I wasn’t his choice for chief, and I’m OK with that. I’m here to do a job for the citizens of this city.
“… He doesn’t like the fact he can’t control the police department the way he wants to,” he added. “… If you look at successful cities that have successful programs, the mayor and the police chief have a great relationship. They communicate. They talk. We don’t.”
Daughtry said Gaskin “finds the negativity” in the department and offers little by way of encouragement to him or his officers. For example, when he informed Gaskin via text this week his officers had arrested two human trafficking suspects and rescued the victim, all the mayor sent back was “a thumbs-up.”
“When is he ever going to give us credit for the stuff that we do?” Daughtry asked. “… It’s personal. I know it’s personal. But at the end of the day, he can come after me all day long. Leave the men and women of this department who are putting their lives on the line (out of it).”
Gaskin did not comment on the record about Daughtry’s statements about their relationship.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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