Police union issues vote of ‘no confidence’ in Chief Lewis

2009-11-06 / Front Page

In a stunning development, the Simi Valley Police Officers Association has issued a vote of “no confidence” in Police Chief Mike Lewis.

Lewis, who spent much of his law enforcement career with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department, has headed the department since September 2006.

On Oct. 28, the association, which represents all 108 sworn Simi officers below the rank of lieutenant, called an emergency meeting of its members to discuss the current leadership and direction of the department.

The discussion ended with an overwhelming vote of “no confidence” for Lewis, according to a press release distributed by the POA-hired public relations firm today.

“The no-confidence vote sends a clear message to city leadership and community residents that their police officers perceive the chief to be, in their words, ‘incompetent, disinterested, non-communicative, uncaring and/or ineffective,’” the release states.

Det. Bill Daniels, union president, said the vote was not driven by the current contract negotiations. He said that there have been “grumblings” of discontent within the POA membership for about a year and a half.

He said part of the reason for the officers’ displeasure with Lewis is that the chief has not developed a relationship with them, and that they don’t feel they’re being supported. In fact, Daniels said Lewis is part of the reason negotiations have been slow going.

“I would say that probably the stumbling block that we have in resolving this involves some non-economic items—items that he is pushing,” the detective said. “It seems the optic is we’re not only battling the city, we’re battling the chief as well.”

The release lists reasons for the officers’ disapproval of Lewis, stating, among other things, that:

- Lewis’ management team placed the Simi Valley Police SWAT team at risk during the execution of a high-risk search warrant. Instead of following accepted protocol, the chief allowed officers to carry only small-caliber pistols, despite risk factors that called for specialized weaponry.

-Shortly after taking the position, the chief trivialized the importance of keeping Simi Valley ‘America’s Safest City,’ a title held for many years.

-The chief has created an environment of divisiveness never before seen in this police department, pushing officer morale to an all-time low.

- Though most chiefs have little to no role in making decisions about officer salary and benefits, Lewis has interjected himself in the current contract negotiations, siding against his officers on almost every issue.

The release goes on to state that “Lewis has failed to act as a public safety advocate in balancing the fiscal concerns of City Hall with the demands of modern law enforcement and the critical protection of residents.”

It also says that Lewis has made no attempt to make the case to city leaders that the department is understaffed. It states that minimum federal guidelines recommend a staffing ratio of one officer per 1000 residents, while SVPD has 0.92 officers per thousand.

In response, Lewis told the Acorn he’s not convinced the vote or the statements in the press release reflect the true sentiments of his officers since the release was written by an “outsider,” a PR firm.

“If negotiations weren’t taking place right now, I have no doubt this wouldn’t have been an issue,” the chief said. “It’s a union tactic, if you will . . . to bring pressure to bear on the decision makers—the City Council.”

Since the union’s contract expired June 30, the city and the POA have been in closed-door negotiations over the union’s next contract. It’s been reported that the POA is resisting the 2 percent cutback taken by all other city employees as part of the June budget process.

Daniels has said the union is willing to take its 2 percent concession and has suggested ways to do so, only to be rejected by the city. He said the POA is simply unwilling to have what he called “non-economic items,” such as working conditions, stripped away.

In October, the union hired a Torrance-based public relations firm to set the record straight about the contract negotiations. This was followed by two POA rallies—one that took place during the city’s 40th birthday celebration and one outside a City Council member’s house.

City Manager Mike Sedell said that he and the City Council have full confidence in the chief and his performance.

“(The council) has unanimously told me that they support the chief and recognize the statements that are being made—that were fully expected at some point to be made—are merely part of a union campaign to disregard taxpayers’ needs in an attempt to pressure our City Council to adopt fiscally irresponsible policies,” he said.

When the Acorn spoke to Lewis earlier this week, the chief said he has kept himself out of negotiations to be “respectful of the process.”

While he doesn’t believe the negotiations have affected officers’ performance on the job, he did say some of the information rank and file officers have received is “inaccurate” and that it has contributed to tensions around the station.

“It is my opinion that everything the officers are hearing is perhaps one-sided in coming from the POA leadership,” Lewis said. “Yes, I think that has contributed to tensions. It’s only because they aren’t aware of the other side (the city’s side) of the story.”

—Carissa Marsh, Kyle Jorrey

Story last updated 7:25 p.m.

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