Officers cited for tossing evidence in criminal cases
Six sworn officers in the Glendale Police Department have been cited for violating department policy in the handling of evidence, with charges from one criminal case dropped as the result of officers’ actions, an internal investigation report obtained Wednesday by The Denver Post reveals.
The department also decided not to pursue charges in another case because of the policy violations, according to the city. Glendale officers are accused of throwing away various pieces of evidence related to several February criminal cases, including license plates, methamphetamine, cocaine and a counterfeit $50 bill. The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office is conducting an external investigation into the matter.
“The Glendale Police Department has already undertaken internal training for all officers and to enhance its procedures,” the city said in a Wednesday press release. “The Glendale Police Department is committed to adhering to the highest standards and to maintaining the trust and confidence of the community.”
The tiny city of 4,500, which is surrounded by Denver, has 27 sworn officers, according to City Manager Chuck Line.
In a Feb. 13 case involving the suspected theft of a scooter, the responding officers tossed a backpack belonging to the suspect into a garbage pail in the evidence intake room, the report says. Inside the backpack, a lieutenant found marijuana, folding knives, pipes “commonly used to smoke narcotics” and prescription pills.
In an incident the next day, a Glendale police officer brought a woman to the detention center on outstanding warrants, where she was found to be in possession of drugs and a phony $50 bill. The officer discarded the drugs and the counterfeit bill back at the police station. He was further cited for im
properly having his wife in the patrol car during the apprehension.
Three Glendale police sergeants were cited in that case for allowing the improper ride-along.
The Denver Post is not naming the officers mentioned in the report because they have not been criminally charged.
Line, the city manager, pointed out that it was Glendale’s own law enforcement personnel who discovered the improper conduct of its officers and alerted prosecutors.
The police department, he said, has taken steps to prevent this situation from happening again, including more training and more cameras in the evidence intake area.
“It just aids with the chain of custody of any evidence,” Line said. “We want to make sure we have some of the best processes in the state.”
While he said that some of the violations discovered were minor, such as reports not being filed on time, he said the issue is one the city is taking seriously.
“We can’t have cases where we’re confident someone committed a crime but can’t be prosecuted because there were errors in the case,” he said.
At the same time, Line said, Glendale wants to make sure the conduct of its officers doesn’t violate the constitutional rights of suspects.
Glendale, in its news release, said beyond the two cases where charges were dropped or not pursued, its internal investigation found no other cases “had been compromised” because of officer conduct.