Phoenix Arizona - 158 Domestic Violence Cases Tossed
Glendale: Detective falsified reports, skipped paperwork
Brent Whiting
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 8, 2005 12:00 AM
Glendale police have been forced to scrap 158 domestic-violence cases because the detective assigned to the cases falsified reports and failed to file the necessary paperwork, officials say.
As a result, they say, wrongdoers will go unpunished and their victims will never get their day in court. At least one woman said she was victimized several times more.
Under Arizona law, domestic violence includes, among other things, physical injury inflicted between married or unmarried partners either living together or sharing a child with each other. It also can involve the use of a deadly weapon in making threats.
Paula Bates, director of community outreach for the Arizona Coalition Against Domestic Violence, said she was unaware of any similar situation with other law enforcement agencies.
In the meantime, police are trying to salvage 84 other misdemeanor cases in which the detective, Brad Moore, has been accused of dropping the ball. The cases date to at least January 2002.
The city now wants to fire Moore, 41, saying he deserves to be stripped of his $55,000-a-year job because he has undermined the credibility of the Glendale Police Department. He is on paid leave pending his appeal of the firing.
In addition, Moore has placed the city in "a poor position" in terms of liability should Glendale be sued, Kirkland said.
Several victims in the cases assigned to Moore have been "re-victimized," one of them four times, the chief added.
For his part, Moore has admitted to police supervisors that he "screwed up" and "got into a bad habit," according to internal documents obtained from Glendale under the Arizona Public Records Law.
Under Arizona law, domestic violence includes, among other things, physical injury inflicted between married or unmarried partners either living together or sharing a child with each other. It also can involve the use of a deadly weapon in making threats.
Police said that in a review of 395 cases assigned to Moore since January 2002, 153 of them, or 39 percent, were "submitted through the proper channels."
In 242 other cases, Moore filed reports falsely claiming the work had been done and that the cases had been submitted to city prosecutors to be tried as misdemeanors in the Glendale City Court, police said.
In fact, 158 cases were left uncompleted and never turned over to prosecutors, police said. These cases cannot be reworked or submitted for prosecution because the one-year statute of limitations has expired.
That leaves 84 cases that remain viable. The cases have been reassigned to other detectives, officers said.
On Jan. 27, Kirkland slapped Moore with a 40-day suspension without pay, which would have allowed the officer to complete 20 years of service and qualify for a pension.
On Feb. 3, after further reflection, Kirkland announced his intent to fire the detective.
On March 21, Kirkland faced job troubles of his own when City Manager Ed Beasley placed the police chief on paid leave, pending an investigation into claims of sexual harassment and other concerns. Kirkland denies any wrongdoing and says he wants a speedy inquiry to clear his name.
