The Whichard committee is investigating the DPD.

Link to Durham-In-Wonderland Blog

~~ snipped from

Friday, August 24, 2007

Week In Review

An important letter recently ran in the Herald-Sun, from former Durham Police Department sergeant Jerry Grugin. He noted,

City Manager Patrick Baker realized the need for change within the Durham Police Department. Hiring Jose Lopez to lead the Police Department was the right move. He is in a strong position to make overdue command staff changes and Baker should remind him of this opportunity often. The circumstances of the Duke lacrosse fallout and other ill-advised departmental decisions reinforce the need for change.

The Whichard committee is currently investigating the Police Department. Some leaders of the department may be held accountable. The trail leading to ineptness will most certainly reach the highest levels of the department. When the end of the trail is reached, it will be interesting to see if the new chief and the City Council really believe change is needed.​

It’s encouraging to see people speaking up from within the community, demanding change.

Click to expand...

The News & Observer

Published: Aug 15, 2007 12:30 AM
Modified: Aug 15, 2007 07:02 AM



~~ snipped

As for the critique of the police department's performance, Durham Mayor Bill Bell expected a report by now. Willis Whichard, the former N.C. Supreme Court justice heading the committee, called that timetable "completely unrealistic." "Unless you want to do a flippant job with it, and I don't do things that way," he added. "I want to do it as expeditiously as possible but consistent with being both thorough and fair."

Wade Barber, a former Superior Court judge and district attorney who is serving as the panel's counsel, needs more time to review the massive case file. He's supposed to come up with the questions that the 12-member panel must answer through interviews with police administrators and investigators.

Reached by telephone Tuesday, Barber declined to estimate when he and law partner Jeremy Falcone would finish their work.
Bell, who proposed the committee in late May and envisioned a report by August, said Tuesday he wasn't worried.


"We said from the start we didn't want to sacrifice thoroughness for speed," Bell said. "I don't want anybody to rush to judgment to try to meet some artificial timetable."


Council member Thomas Stith III, who is challenging Bell for the mayor's seat, said the committee needs to move quickly.


"The citizens of Durham certainly deserve answers in the near term," he said. "It's not a new investigation. It's a review of an existing record. Given the expertise involved in this case, I would hope we would see timely response to some of the main questions that are out there."

Those main questions focus on the chain of command, including the role of Chief Steve Chalmers during the investigation,..... more at link.


Finally.

WRAL.com

Possibility of Civil Suits in Lacrosse Case Halts Probe of Police

Posted: Aug. 28, 2007
Updated: Today at 1:39 p.m.

DURHAM, N.C. — A special committee probing the Durham Police Department's handing of the Duke lacrosse rape case has stopped its work because the city's liability insurance provider warned that findings could provide material for civil lawsuits.

A statement released Monday by the city said the probe is in "a holding pattern" until Durham's attorneys meet next week with lawyers representing former Duke lacrosse players who were falsely accused of rape, The News & Observer of Raleigh reported.

The City Council will then decide whether the committee, which is led by a former state Supreme Court justice, will continue or be suspended indefinitely, said Mayor Bill Bell.

.....more at link

Well, whatever the probe shows and the end results, I'm grateful it is different departments, homicide is a different department and it seems they aren't rushing to judgment or otherwise this investigation would be done and the murderer would be behind bars already.

Imo The Rave will be :behindbar one day. I pray he's apprehended before he marries again.

The News & Observer

Suits endanger lacrosse panel

By Matt Dees and Joseph Neff, Staff Writer

DURHAM - The spectre of massive civil lawsuits has put the future of a special committee probing the police’s handling of the Duke lacrosse case in limbo.

The city’s insurance provider advised last week that continued investigation by the panel could provide ammunition for a civil lawsuit, Mayor Bill Bell confirmed Monday.


Falsely accused Duke lacrosse players David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann have hired powerful attorneys in anticipation of suing the city.

...... more at link