Officer cases under scrutiny
Veteran detective back on the job following preliminary review of harassment charges
The veteran city police detective facing harassment charges stemming from a domestic dispute last month involving two women is back on the job after an preliminary review determined “there is no reason at this time for him not to be at work,” according to Police Chief Eric Clifford.
Clifford declined get into specifics Friday about the department’s decision to bring Brandon Kietlinski back, saying he didn’t want it to have any impact on court proceedings, but noted the internal probe is ongoing and won’t be finalized until after the matter is adjudicated.
The 36-year-old Kietlinski, who had been out on paid leave pending the outcome of the court case and internal probe, returned to work on March 16 or 17, Clifford said. He’s been with the department since 2009.
Kietlinski still faces two counts of second-degree harassment, a violation, as a result of the complaints filed by the two Glenville women in what that town’s police chief has characterized as a domestic-related dispute involving “non contact harassment.”
More specifically, Kietlinski is accused of sending an affectionate text message earlier this month to one of the women, expressing his desire to rekindle his romantic relationship. Around the same time, Kietlinski allegedly texted the other
woman, using foul language, telling her he knew she had called his job, before finishing the correspondence with “you’re done.”
Court papers indicate that Kietlinski was told to not have any contact with the two women, who live together. He has maintained his innocence, and his attorney Andrew Safranko, who did not return a call seeking comment Friday, has said he plans to file a motion to have the charges dismissed because they have no merit.
The matter is now in the hands of a special prosecutor with the Saratoga County District Attorney’s Office after Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney requested his office be taken off the case because of a potential conflict of interest given that Kietlinski is the lead detective in a homicide case.
On Friday, Saratoga County District Attorney Karen Heggen said in a voicemail message that her office just recently received the case file and will be appearing the next time Kietlinski is in court, which according to a Glenville court clerk is April 5.
Crash report issued
Meantime, the department Friday released the accident report into an on-duty crash involving Clifford’s nephew, Josh Clifford during the evening hours of March 3. Josh Clifford is the son of the chief ’s older brother, a retired Schenectady police officer.
The document says Josh Clifford, a rookie road patrol officer, was traveling west along Eastern Avenue on his way back to the police station when “he hit a patch of ice and lost control of the sports utility vehicle before veering off the road onto the sidewalk and slamming into two residences along the road, both of which sustained “significant damage to both properties.”
Though the accident report itself does not indicate the condition of the road, accompanying notes from Officer Jeff St. Onge that were later reviewed by a supervising sergeant state that the street was “wet and road conditions possibly a factor.”
There were no reported injuries and Clifford, who was hired in February 2021, has remained on the job. Police have said that speed and impairment were not a factor in the wreck.
On Friday, Clifford said a report from the department’s collision reconstruction investigator who reviewed the evidence and “did their best” to simulate what happened is “close to being done.” Once it is ready, it will be reviewed by police commanders, Clifford, as well as the public safety commissioner and the mayor.
“I don’t think it’s something that I need to recuse myself on, what I’ve done is that I’m including the commissioner in this one so that there is transparency in my decision making,” he said. “I can’t get into the decision of recusing myself from everything he does or my son will do.”
Clifford’s son, Daniel Clifford, was among eight recruits hired in January, who are currently going through the police academy before they will hit the streets.
The chief hopes the review can be done within the next week and the report could be made public in about two weeks.
At the same time, the department’s Office of Professional Standards will be conducting an internal probe for any possible wrongdoing related to the crash.
Clifford said if the discipline amounts to formal charges, the commissioner will preside over the hearing, but if it is, for example, something less serious or a counseling memo, he still plans to run it by the commissioner to make sure the punishment is “consistent with what we’ve done with other officers.”
“I will make sure that no favoritism is given and I’ll also make sure he’s not treated more harshly because he’s my nephew — it goes both ways,” Clifford added. “What I can say with confidence is that it won’t be nothing, he went off the road, damaged a police car, and citizens’ property.”