Posted: Tuesday, October 1, 2013 6:00 am
The report couldn’t be more damning or clear cut: The Morrisville Police Department is a “tragedy” or “catastrophe” waiting to happen.
We cannot do the extensive report justice in the limited space here. Read our detailed Page 1 story that appeared in Monday’s newspaper, or see the full report online at buckscountycouriertimes.com. It will leave your head spinning.
In short, the report describes a leaderless and warring police department in a state of total disarray if not chaos. Here’s the short List:
- officers lack proper supervision;
- officers are not in proper uniform;
- firearms are poorly administered and secured;
- crime evidence isn’t promptly documented or handled;
- the police department itself is not properly secured nor is it under proper surveillance;
- and rules and policies, which have not been updated since 1991, are outdated and unknown to some officers.
Here are the summarizing comments of the report’s author, Frederick DeVesa, who was interim police director in Morrisville for two weeks after which he quit in frustration citing lack of cooperation: “Sadly, the department has been neglected for years and is dysfunctional in many respects... It lacks the necessary leadership, supervision, discipline, personnel and resources to effectively carry out its mission in a community which is experiencing a growing crime problem.”
DeVesa knows of what he speaks. The former Newark police officer and detective has more than 30 years experience in law enforcement, including serving as assistant attorney general in New Jersey. DeVesa also served on the New Jersey Superior Court, retiring as the judge in charge of criminal courts in Middlesex County.
His startling report was submitted to borough council, the mayor and administrators several weeks ago. Not surprisingly, borough officials have been unwilling to release it publicly or even talk about it. The newspaper obtained a copy via a Right to Know request.
No doubt embarrassed by its contents, council has nothing to hide now. The report is out and the police department outed. It is now the responsibility of council members, the mayor — who refused to meet with DeVasa during his short tenure — and their professional administrators to not only act on the report but to do so in a public way. Citizens surely have concerns and questions. They should be invited to air them at a public meeting and council members should give them honest and direct answers.
As enlightening as DeVesa’s 12-page report is, it might only scratch the surface. Still not public are the contents of a 3,200-page investigative report conducted by an outside agency. That report was done at the request of the borough’s insurance company in the wake of lawsuits filed by police officers against each other. It took a year to complete and is in the hands of the county DA and the state attorney general. Council members say they have not seen it.
We suspect they may not want to.
27 comments:
Great free advertizing for the "Come to Morrisville" marketing campaign.
Thanks to Rita, Eileen, the SOC and the rest of their conies, it will take a long time for this town to recover from the mess they've made. Meanwhile, they'll all sit at home smugly certain that this was all someone else's fault. I really don't understand how they can show their faces in public. They are so deluded, I can almost feel sorry or them. Then I look around at what they have and haven't done, and the ire rises again. Their actions and behavior tell us all we need to know about how small-minded and petty they are. They'll go the grave knowing they are abject failures no matter how much they try to deny it.
The good reasonable people need to rise above this madness and dysfunction. We can't tolerate it anymore, and must translate energy to action.
step one get to the town watch meeting tonight 6;30pm Italian american club harrison avenue and get to know your neighbors.
vote in November and get some new blood onto that council and in that mayor seat thats step two
Sorry,
I will not be voting for Justin Bowers and Dave Rivella has my vote for mayor.
New blood?
Bowers is working for Jane Burger through the dog park group. That is pretty clear.
Pepitone has Mike Falkavitz working for him on his facebook page. Falkavitz lives in Falls Township and was Jane Burger's campaign manager when she ran (and lost)against John Galloway for the state rep seat.
I know some people think that the Morrisville population aren't so bright, but at least don't be so obvious.
I pretty much found out that Bowers was a Burgerbot when I saw the campaign signs in May without a treasurer listed. I'm sorry to hear Pepitone is using the old Burger crew. I was giving him a chance. His angry white man with a gun attitude is wearing thin. This is a good reason to cut him off.
"The media really is horrible. Good things happen in Morrisville every day that are worthy of good publicity yet nobody hears anything or rarely hears anything. Nothing positive would ever more than one article if it gets any.
Something less than flattering for Morrisville happens and it's the media's golden goose.
I know that it's the way of things. It's still unfortunate. The negativity an most annoying."
Good things happen in Trenton, Camden, Afghanistan, Syria, & L. Makefield every day too. This Morrisville PD debacle is newsworthy and absolutely affects public welfare and safety. It should be in the papers. It should be dealt with responsibly.
Anonymous- Sorry to burst your conspiracy theory but Bill Pepitone is not working with Mike Falkavitz. He is working with a bunch of fed up Morrisville residents who have volunteered their time because we are sick and tired of nothing being done in Morrisville. If you would like to talk to him or me, his campaign manager, you can reach us on the facebook page you are familiar with Restore Morrisville. Or better yet come out tomorrow night Wednesday 10/2 to La Villa Restaurant on Pennsylvania Ave in Morrisville between 6 pm-9 pm and talk to us in person so you can form your own opinion of him and what it is we hope to accomplish with Pepitone as Mayor.
Hey Kitty Westrope how that foot taste?
Sorry Corrine,
It's not in what you say it's in what you do and your guy has been here not doing anything. He talks a lot but there has been no action, just negativity.
"Hey Kitty Westrope how that foot taste?"
Why would a president of an organization talk poorly about her members? I sat there dumbfounded at her telling everyone that the Morriville Business Association offered to pay for cameras to be installed at any business that wanted one but no businesses took up the offer. She was making her members look bad as if they don't care. Thank God that business owner stood up and told her that no one ever came to her business or received a letter about the offer. If I was that owner my next move would be to kick Kitty off the MBA board.
The MBA and Morrisville doesn't need someone like that as a leader.
I was thinking the same thing. At the meeting I thought, are you really standing there boasting about yourself and complaining about the members of the organization you represent? Just kind of shook my head a little and waited for her to sit back down.
I don't like Westrope or Rivella and if Mr. Pepitone been involved in
a n y t h i n g
to do with borough government I may have voted for him. But, his comments remind me of a person that has come in on the middle of a conversation and is judging peoples' performance/decisions based on only what he has heard in one conversation. I fear he doesn't know who is responsible for what or what the actual role of Morrisville Borough Mayor is.
It would be nearly impossible for anyone, including Pepitone, to do worse than Ledger.
Any normal person of reasonable intelligence and no ax to grind can figure it out.
I thought the same thing about Kitty. I spoke with her and she was dismissive of the business people in town and angry they wouldn't take the cameras. She's not the right person for the mayor's job.
She needs to perform psychic healing rituals on our town Chakras.
Yeah we should all listen to Victor Cicero who was the police chief and along with Dave Rivella will be closing our police department.
Its just a matter of whether they can get another department to take over patroling the borough. Maybe we should just merge with Falss township since they have all the money and apparently more brains then the council we have.
I will say I like Bill Pepitone because he isn't involved with any politics in this town. Both sides are full of themselves and are completely wrong for our town. I would write in Pepitone before I would wipe my backside with anything from the other two.
LOL Vic Cicero sent a letter to borough council saying he wanted to get rid of the police dept. Rivella had nothing to do with that.
As for Dave Rivella, you are either ill informed or have no idea what goes on in town. If you knew Rivella's background and bothered to ask him you would have never suggested your lie about his intentions for our police dept. Rivella has more of a stake in seeing the police dept succeed than any of us. He and his wife and kids lived through/have to live with the product of an unsuccessful police force. You obviously don't know the guy so you should get your facts right or stop spewing your lies. You're disgusting, whomever you are. Nothing is too low.
I've read Pepintone's stuff and it actually he comes off pretty it's Pepitone full of himself. His presumptuous and his information is misguided. I really don't care for the way he is capitalizing on problems in the police dept to suggest he is the only candidate, even though he didn't bother to make and suggestions for the past five years.
Do you even know "Kitty" or Dave? I know the answer. I don't see either of them as being full of themselves. Kitty is constantly putting her foot in her mouth and her own peeps cut her loose. Dave walks around like the wounded guy he is, but he is still out and about and working for the town as he and his family always have.
I get wanting your guy to win, but don't make it up as you go along.
Had to laugh at my last post. Must have cut & pasted it too much...but you get the idea.
It's obvious that Pepitone knows absolutely nothing about small town municipalities. I actually think he's not qualified. There is more to being mayor than running the police dept.
Cicero the former NYPD guy wants to get rid of the police dept. He said it at a council meeting and he sent in a letter to council saying the same. Go to borough hall and get the letter for yourself through the right to know.
Rivella has nothing to do with Cicero's bad behavior. Anyone who reads this blog or pays attention knows this.
This is the problem with bogs, people just spread lies.
So Ledger and Cicero were at Pepitone's fundraiser, that's all I need to know.
You can really tell about a person by the company they keep.
People don't choose to stay with other people who's beliefs are in direct opposition to their own beliefs and character.
Which is why Rivella stopped trusting Cicero a couple of years ago. One of these two men stopped working for the town and started working for his own interests and this was not Rivella. No one can dispute Rivella's dedication to Morrisville.
My hope is that Bill Pepitone wins. It is however unlikely but with Dave Rivella we are doomed to be left to the Gangs.
Isn’t that who killed his son?
As we all know Bill is a retired NYPD officer. If he can not hire new officers at least he should be capable of repairing the damage done to the Morrisville Department by our current council, former chief Victor Cicero, and the current Mayor Rita Ledger.
All parties are completely culpable and have no excuses. Rivella and Cicero are allies and have been in the majority for 4 years. No excuses on their part. Rita Ledger is useless and dresses like she just rolled out of bed.
Bill Pepitone hopefully will bring a level of professionalism to the office unlike Rivella or Westrope will.
Yo schmuck, you're single-handedly ruining Pepitone's chances.
Is that your goal?
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