Police director faces heat over closed-door policies
TRENTON » There’s roll call. And then there’s cattle call.
The outside of the Trenton Police director’s office had essentially become the latter. And so last month, acting police director Pedro Medina re-issued an order that effectively made the police director’s office and the outside of it a no-fly zone.
Or a no-roaming zone. It was one of the smaller changes Medina implement during a comprehensive shakeup of the department that has generated a lot of noise.
Medina told The Trentonian on Wednesday he reissued a longstanding order about the police director’s office as a reminder that was intended to restore the chain of command and “control the traffic” because officers were stampeding in, out and around the top cop’s domain, which is behind a glass-partition on the second floor of police headquarters.
To hear Median tell it, the outside of his office was being treated “like it was a playground.” The order also stressed that officers needed to abide by the process to meet with Medina if they had concerns or feedback that included checking in with administrative personnel or the chief of staff.
“If you’re a patrolman you really have no business to have access [the office] any time you want,” Medina said. “It’s a matter of discipline and control.
In issuing the no-fly zone order, the acting police director, who still hasn’t decided whether he wants the gig permanently, said he was just trying to re-instill a sense of disciple and respect of the chain of command, fundamental tenets in a paramilitary organization.
But some in the department took it as a sign that Medina, who was handpicked by Mayor Reed Gusciora to take over for ousted police director Ernest Parrey Jr., doesn’t have an open-door policy that they grew accustomed to having under the previous regime.
Apparently, some felt so comfortable with the last police director that sources said people in the department were tagging Medina on Facebook with feedback about changes they wanted to be implemented.
Asked about that, Medina said he didn’t couldn’t recall any specific instances of that happening.
Others in the department said the no-fly order wasn’t a big deal and believed it was aimed at tightening up the ranks and making decisionmakers accountable instead of allowing them to run every decision by the police director.
Suffice it to say, not everyone in the department has agreed with the shots Medina has called.
A big one that stirred up talk was Medina reassigning Capt. Don Fillinger from the detective bureau to administrative services.
Fillinger and Medina were involved in a heated discussion at the police director’s office, sources with intimate knowledge of the discussion said.
It grew loud and contentious enough that people knocked on the door to make sure everyone was OK after Medina reportedly shouted for Fillinger to get the “f—k out of” his office, sources said.
Medina wouldn’t discuss what was said behind closed doors and instructed a reporter to ask Fillinger about the alleged expletive-laden tirade.
“He was told this is nothing personal,” Medina said. “I did what I thought was necessary.”
Fillinger, who couldn’t be reached for comment, was upset over the move because he was getting detective’s pay for heading up the detective bureau.
Fillinger was listed as making $189,831 as of March of this year, according to pension records.
Those familiar with the matter said the loss of detective pay amounts to about a 4-percent decrease that will affect Fillinger’s pension. That translates to about $7,500 less annual pay for Fillinger.
Fillinger’s final salary when he retires is used to calculate pension benefits, sources said.
Capt. Mark Kieffer, president of the Superior Officers Association, couldn’t be reached for comment about whether Fillinger plans to or has filed a grievance over his transfer.
Medina wouldn’t discuss why Fillinger was moved out of the detective bureau. But he defended the decision saying it didn’t violate the union contract.
And he couldn’t let the timing of it — with Fillinger’s retirement on the horizon — change what he felt was best for the department.
“That’s showing favoritism,” Medina said.
“I’d be upset too if I lose money, but again, my conscience is clean. And my heart is at piece,” Medina said. “Captains get paid well. You should know the ins and outs of this police department.”
Medina said he expected to get second-guessed whenever he took over for Parrey. The department has been ravaged by factions over the years.
Is it now Medina’s minions versus Parrey’s peeps?
Medina acknowledged there are still divisions in the department.
“If I say ‘no,’ I’d be lying to you,” Medina said. “There’s always going to be cliques and divisions in any organization.”