PENDLETON, Ind. — A 30-year Pendleton police officer who faced termination from the town for allegedly letting an impaired driver back behind the wheel was instead allowed to retire Thursday.
The Pendleton Safety Board voted unanimously to accept Mike Moore’s letter of retirement, which he submitted to the board after it had moved last month to terminate him on the request of Police Chief Marc Farrer. Board members said they were just following procedure and their decision was not a reversal of their earlier disciplinary action against Moore.
Farrer brought the case to the board after a review of police cruiser video showed Moore giving field sobriety tests to a man who police said clearly failed. The video obtained by The Herald Bulletin shows a driver who is unsteady on his feet, has difficulty walking a straight line, staggers and at times supports himself on his car.
When no arrest or reports on the stop surfaced, police investigated and alleged that Moore had allowed the man to drive away from the scene, with Moore trailing behind in his squad car.
The driver later admitted he had been abusing prescription painkillers, according to the police investigation.
“I had just cause,” Farrer said after the safety board voted. “They chose to look into his retirement letter.”
Board member Jeanette Isbell said she did not believe the safety board had reversed itself after Moore hired an attorney and resubmitted his retirement request with a formal retirement date.
“We followed the procedure I believe as outlined earlier by our town attorney,” Isbell said.
Town attorney Alex Intermill said reports in The Herald Bulletin saying that Moore had been terminated were “misstatements.” He said the safety board had voted to proceed with termination against Moore, giving him a period of time to request a hearing, which he did.
Neither Moore nor his attorney attended Thursday’s meeting. Moore never appeared at any meetings where action concerning his discipline took place.
Before the board voted, Town Council president Don Henderson turned to Intermill. “There are no criminal activities here,” Henderson said. “There are misjudgments made, very clearly made ... is that the judgment?”
Intermill agreed. He told the board that “the jurisdiction question raised by the retirement of Mike Moore is an important one” not controlled by precedent. He said Moore’s retirement means “the ultimate goal has been achieved,” because he’s off the force.
Moore’s pension and benefits would have been unaffected by either decision. By permitting him to retire in good standing, Moore can continue to carry his firearm and badge, which Farrer returned to him.
Farrer said the decision could set a precedent of a different kind — allowing officers eligible to retire to avoid discipline hearings by submitting a retirement letter, even after the initial termination vote has taken place. He has said it also sullies retirement for officers who have an unblemished record. Moore had been disciplined multiple times.
“My hope is we all have enough pride in our job,” Farrer said, “that we continue to do our job and serve people in the way we’ve always done.”
Henderson said he didn’t see the potential for officers to avoid discipline by retiring. “Only if you have the years invested would we allow you to do that.”
“I think we made the right conclusion,” Henderson said.
Contact Dave Stafford: 648-4250, dave.stafford@heraldbulletin.com
Breaking News
Related Photos
-
Dave Stafford
-
Related Links
Discussion
Embattled Pendleton officer allowed to retire
Safety board votes unanimously to accept letter of retirement
- Breaking News
-
-
Police discover drugs, paraphernalia in home
Police have arrested two men they say were involved in the manufacturing and selling of methamphetamine.
-
GM records its highest profit ever: $7.6 billion
General Motors earned its highest profit ever last year.
-
Foes allege Sen. Lugar doesn't really live in Indiana
The charge by GOP challenger Richard Mourdock is just the latest in a series of them levied against the Republican senator by an unlikely alliance of Democrats and conservatives who have joined forces to argue Lugar no longer has much to do with Indiana.
-
State police arrest man for trafficking with Pendleton inmate
State police made an arrest Wednesday morning, after prison staff at the Correctional Industrial Facility noticed a man throw a package over the fence.
-
Boy testifies at grandfather's child abuse trial
A 9-year-old boy testified Wednesday that his grandfather hit him in the face, causing his nose to bleed, and kicked him and his two brothers during a pair of miles-long hikes at the Grand Canyon last summer.
-
Adult education GED classes offered
Anderson Community Schools is offering classes in GED preparation, English Language classes and Basic Education Refresher classes for the 2011-12 school year.
-
18 indicted in western Indiana meth investigation
A federal prosecutor says 18 people have been indicted on federal drug charges as the result of a multi-agency investigation of a methamphetamine distribution network in western Indiana.
-
Whitney Houston's death spurs look at her doctors, meds
It's become standard-operating procedure when a celebrity dies too young — investigators immediately go looking through their nightstand and medicine cabinet. That effort is well under way in the death of Whitney Houston.
-
No cussing in class for teachers, lawmaker says
A teacher's role may be to expand a student's vocabulary, but one Arizona lawmaker wants to make sure that doesn't include four-letter words.
-
Defiant Iran claims major steps in nuclear fuel
In defiant swipes at its foes, Iran said Wednesday it is dramatically closer to mastering the production of nuclear fuel even as the U.S. weighs tougher pressures and Tehran's suspected shadow war with Israel brings probes far beyond the Middle East.
- More Breaking News Headlines
-
Police discover drugs, paraphernalia in home
Top Bargainers Announce Payroll Tax Cut Deal
Student Photos 'hijacked', Used on Porn Site
Should U.S. Arm Medevacs in Afghanistan?
Foreclosures Rise Only Slightly, More Expected
Old Friends, New Mission: China VP Visits Iowa
Jeremy Lin a Slam-dunk for Knicks and Fans
Defense Begins in UVA Player Murder Trial
More Than 350 Die in Honduran Prison Fire
Defiant Iran Loads Own Fuel Rods Into Reactor
Raw Video: Syrian Army, Rebels Battle in Homs
Video Essay: Saving the Miami Blue Butterfly
NYPD Officer Shot During Subway Confrontation
Iranian Boats Shadow US Aircraft Carrier in Gulf
Hundreds Rally Against Alabama Immigration Law
Whitney Houston Funeral to Be Invitation Only
New Details in Search for Missing Utah Mom
Raw Video: Protesters, Security Clash in Bahrain
School Pays Students to Attend Class
Trial Opens for Ala. Man in Bride's Diving Death
Baltimore's 'Crime Stopper' Is a Basketball Star
