Pinole police hires deputy fired in misconduct case
A sevenyear deputy with the Alameda County Sheriff ’s Office who was fired for filing a false police report regained his career in law enforcement last year by joining the Pinole Police Department, according to public records.
The records — released under the state’s new police transparency law SB1421 — show that Joshua Shavies destroyed furniture that his estranged wife had planned to sell but then reported a burglary and vandalism to a sheriff ’s deputy in Contra Costa County.
Pinole police confirmed Monday that Shavies is employed by the department. He joined the force in August, according to the department’s Facebook page.
Pinole Police Chief Neil Gang said the department does not condone Shavies’ actions, but “second chances are warranted” in this case.
In August 2014, Shavies discovered his estranged wife had removed furniture and other personal possessions after entering their home, according to an administrative review. She had left a dining room table and four theater chairs to be sold to a neighbor, which were “clearly marked” with notes about the sale, officers said.
Shavies called the Contra Costa County Sheriff ’s Office — the law enforcement agency overseeing where he lived — to report that someone had entered his home and broke the furniture, records show. He told the Contra Costa County deputy that he suspected his wife was behind the vandalism.
But the neighbor purchasing the table and chairs told an Alameda County sergeant that she saw Shavies destroy the furniture, which he admitted in an interview with his employers, according to records. He told investigators that he was going through a bad divorce and called the vandalism “bad judgment on my part.”
An investigator wrote in an administrative review report that Shavies probably intended to get his wife investigated for violating a court order.
The neighbor, whose name is redacted in the records, told Alameda County sheriff ’s deputies that she feared retaliation from Shavies.
Contra Costa County sheriff ’s deputies visited Shavies’ residence multiple times in the month before the false police report, records show.
Alameda County Sheriff Gregory Ahern terminated Shavies’ employment in August 2015, and a county civil services commission upheld the disciplinary action in April 2016 after Shavies appealed.
“Your poor behavior reflects negatively on our agency and on law enforcement in general,” Ahern wrote in his termination letter. “While you may be going through a difficult time in your personal life, you are still expected to maintain the highest standards of behavior on and off duty.”
Shavies was not employed by a law enforcement agency for three years before joining the Pinole police force, according to the department.
“The Alameda County Sheriff ’s Office’s findings of dishonesty had no relation to any members of the public or to the performance of his duties as a law enforcement officer,” Gang said in a statement. He added that Shavies was “honest and forthcoming throughout our entire hiring process.”
The Alameda County Sheriff ’s Office declined to comment on the records.
“Our business with Mr. Shavies is closed,” said Sgt. Ray Kelly, a spokesman for the office.
Shavies, his attorney and the Pinole city manager did not respond to requests for comment.
Under SB1421, state and local law enforcement agencies must release records related to police shootings and officer misconduct, including sustained findings on sexual assault and dishonesty. The law went into effect Jan. 1.