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Miami
Teflon Timoney
Miami Police chief avoids contempt of court charges
for refusing to obey a subpoena
By Angie Hargot
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The Civilian Investigative Panel didn’t take
action against Miami Police Chief John Timoney
for not testifying. File photo by Josh Becker |
Miami Police Chief John Timoney again avoided penalties for defying
a Civilian Investigative Panel (CIP) subpoena
requiring him to testify in relation to charges that
he drove a free Lexus SUV courtesy of Lexus of
Kendall for more than a year without reporting it,
as required under county and state ethics laws.
Now also under investigation by the Florida Department of Law
Enforcement and the FBI for allegedly underreporting
crime statistics, Timoney was subpoenaed to testify
before the CIP on Friday, Jan. 11, about the
allegations that he improperly accepted the SUV
gift. Since November, he has avoided action by the
city panel, which is charged with investigating
allegations of Miami Police Department misconduct,
by claiming the agency does not have jurisdiction
over him. When he didn’t show up at
1 p.m. Friday as scheduled, CIP attorney Charles Mays cancelled
the meeting.
The CIP asked the courts for help in December. A
little more than a week ago, a circuit judge ordered
Timoney to testify and produce documents related to
the SUV.
But just two hours before his appointment, the CIP received a fax
from City Attorney Jorge Fernandez, on behalf of
City Manager Pedro Hernandez, asking to postpone the
hearing to allow Fernandez time to “intervene.”
Hernandez, traditionally charged with supervision of the city’s
police chief, is now claiming his own investigation.
As of press time, Timoney’s attorney had not filed a protective
order giving the chief any legal right to avoid the
subpoena. But at Tuesday’s meeting, the CIP avoided
taking board action that would authorize enforcement
of any penalties. Mays canceled the Friday hearing
after Timoney’s attorney “made it abundantly clear
that he was not going to show up,” he said.
Had the CIP convened, Timoney’s absence might have prompted more
severe action. Although Mays said he did not cancel
the hearing to avoid prosecuting Timoney, he could
have asked a judge to hold Timoney in contempt of
court for violating the Jan. 4 order if the hearing
had taken place.
Mays said he is not afraid of holding Timoney in contempt of court.
“That’s not even on the totem pole of concern,” Mays
said.
Timoney’s attorney asserted that the courts would hear his
challenge to the CIP’s jurisdiction on March 20 —
the earliest court date he could schedule.
On Tuesday, CIP members avoided the option of enforcing the
penalties, instead opting to give Mays more time to
convince the judge to move up that court date.
CIP Chairperson Brenda Shapiro noted that Timoney might not have
shown up on Friday because the hearing conflicted
with a
2 p.m. funeral procession for slain Miami Detective James Walker.
“The chief would rightfully need to be there,” said Shapiro, who
vowed to take the issue to the Florida Supreme Court
if necessary.
However, board member Janet McAliley saw it differently.
“It’s an utter outrage that this would happen,” she said. “This is
a political move to stop an investigation. If this
is allowed to stand, we might as well not exist.”
Mays assured the board that it does have jurisdiction over Timoney.
“We can proceed,” he said. “We will do what we have
to do.”
“We have a chief who has never cooperated,” board member Fred St.
Amand said. “This is purely a mockery of the CIP.
This chief is not going to move. We have an
obligation to tell the public what’s going on here.
We have an obligation to go forward.”
However, the CIP decided not to schedule another meeting for
Timoney’s appearance. Mays assured the board that he
would try to move up Timoney’s court challenge
while the investigation continued.
“Don’t put a gun to my head,” Mays told the board. “Allow me to do
what I’ve been doing for years.”
And with that, the board withdrew its motion.
The CIP expects to interview Lexus of Kendall
General Manager Chris Roberts next Friday. The
Miami-Dade County Ethics Commission determined in
November that the chief should have disclosed the
use of the SUV as a gift. The same day, Timoney was
personally sued by the AFL-CIO union and the
Alliance of Retired Americans over the 2003
Free Trade Area of the Americas protests. The parties claim Timoney is
to blame for intimidation and illegal searches,
among other egregious policing tactics that occurred
during the infamous protests.
Incidentally, Timoney’s tactics during those
protests have been investigated by the CIP before.
The panel tried to subpoena the FTAA summit policing
strategies of the Miami Police Department under
Timoney’s direction. A circuit judge sided with the
CIP, but the 3rd District Court of Appeals ruled in
2005 that the department’s strategies were protected
by state law because they could be used in future
law enforcement crisis situations.
The county’s ethics commission decision carried no
punitive legal consequences. The AFL-CIO lawsuit and
a
Florida Commission on Ethics investigation into the
use of the SUV are pending.
The FBI and FDLE investigations into Timoney’s
alleged underreporting of crime stats, which could
carry criminal charges, are also pending.
Comments? E-mail
angie@miamisunpost.com |
