One of Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs' favorite cops was arrested by Union County Police Wednesday on two counts of soliciting prostitution, I have been told.
As the story goes, the officer -- who appeared in campaign mailers in support of both Robinson-Briggs' mayoral runs -- was spotted by undercover county cops picking up the prostitute on West Front Street. They later approached the parked vehicle and caught the officer and the lady in flagrante.
The story continues that the officer was recognized, admonished and let go.
Boys being boys, however, word began to get around. It is said that when Union County Prosecutor Ted Romankow heard of it, he ordered an Internal Affairs investigation, which resulted in charges being filed for two counts of soliciting prostitution (presumably the solicitation of the deed, and, well, you know...).
The officer was arrested and issued a summons.
My interest is not in the titillating aspects of the situation but in the fact that we now have TWO instances of alleged sexual highjinks involving Plainfield public safety professionals, being addressed in two different venues, with potentially different outcomes.
So, as this case goes forward, here is what I think are important questions to keep an eye on --
CIRCUMSTANCESThis one will bear watching.THE CHARGE
- What were the circumstances surrounding the officer's bust? Was he in a city vehicle? Was he on city time?
CONSEQUENCES
- Does the fact that the arrest was made by COUNTY police mean the case will be heard in county court?
DOUBLE STANDARDS?
- What are the potential consequences for the officer in question? Will he face possible jail time and/or a fine? Will his job and pension be in jeopardy?
- If the consequences for the officer are significantly more serious than the little wrist-slap of three days' suspension that Public Safety Director Martin Hellwig got, it will be fair game to ask if there are double standards at play here. And whether the Hellwig matter ought to be referred to the County Prosecutor's office rather than left in the Mayor's, where disinclination to pursue miscreants is almost a badge of honor.
-- Dan Damon [follow]
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10 comments:
As much as lots of people might LIKE to concentrate on said officer I hope they don't. I don't believe people should be given a free pass for those things, but this is Plainfield. Since the Mayor decided to roll in the mud with "Hellwig and the Angry 6.5" " I believe that officer who is reportedly being investigated should drag ALL of that dirty laundry out into the open. That officer could be doing Plainfield a fine bit of service through his misdeed by having the entire Hellwig/Personal "Massage" Therapist in another town on city time in a city vehicle issue brought out into the open. I would love to see this splashed all over the front pages of the papers and the blogs and see the Chershire Cat Assistant Mayor Sharon SQUIRMING when they ask her opinion about SOLICITING PROSTITUTES on CITY TIME......and why an OFF DUTY OFFICER can't do it on his own time. Since the off duty officer was on his own time in his own vehicle he should get less than a day off without pay. I firmly stand behind the police officer in question!!!
ok...missed the part of the post about "not knowing" if it was a city vehicle or city time... PLEASE I HOPE NOT !!!!! But, either way, he was at least supporting the local "business" community. Much better than Hellwig.
BRING BACK THE CHIEF ENOUGH OF THIS NONSENSE
Remember:
All people are equal ... except some people are more equal than others.
It is a well known fact that in Plainfield the mayor's favorites can get away with anything. It's a shame that we have a corrupt administration and that things like prostitution, whether with a male of female, by a city official is considered fine. In the real world Hellwig would have lost his job, in our mayor's world, he's just a bad boy who gets a slap on the wrist. We need responsible government in Plainfield and I hope we get it one day.
One more important question that need to be answered;
Will the Mayor now be singing the praises of the undercover officers who failed to report the incident and only admonished the officer and sent him on his way?!?!
Just a few comments.
Not aware of Sgt. W's duty status at the time of his illicit activity but doubt he was on duty. Odds are against that becuase he usually spends most of his time inside Hdqs. anyway.
Courious as to what the punishment of the Union County Officers handling the incident and letting the Sgt. walk away is.
This incident and the one involving Helwig are quite similar. Both involved the act of soliciting a prostitute. However, one was definitley done on City time and with City equipment. And what was the punishment - a big 3 day suspension.
So not that a standard for a city employee soliciting a prostitute has been set by the Mayor, I can;t see the Sgt. getting anything more than a 3 day suspension. He doesn;t even need a good lawyere to present this fact to a Judge and based on past experience, the Judge will look at that and say you cannot provide different levels of punishment for the same activity.
Way to go Mayor, I'm sure Sgt. W.
is enjoying his suspension knowing full well he will be getting paid for his days off.
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS THE CHIEF OF POLICE.
Michael Lattimore for Mayor! We Need Mike! This mayor is a joke and the Queen City is a mess!!!
@ 12:49 AM: Does that mean Mike would have to move to Plainfield? Just asking.....
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