STEVEN A. McCALEB
103 ALVERADO DRIVE
LONG BEACH, MISSISSIPPI 39560
PHONE & FAX: (228)-868-8428
E-MAIL: mccaleb5thdist@aol.com
WEB SITE: www.mississippiwebsite.com
STEVEN A. McCALEB
103 ALVERADO DRIVE
LONG BEACH, MISSISSIPPI 39560
PHONE & FAX: (228)-868-8428
E-MAIL: mccaleb5thdist@aol.com
WEB SITE: www.mississippiwebsite.com
Links
Who runs the Long beach Police
Department?
Who signs the pay checks which are taxpayers dollars?
I believe the answer to both of these questions is:
THE MAYOR AND ALDERMEN OF LONG BEACH, MISSISSIPPI
I honestly believe in order to
straighten out the operation of
the Police Department is to let Harrison County Sheriff's Department
take over the Long Beach Police Department.
There city employees can sue the city
of Long Beach all they want
and keep there jobs as well.
The change will be that now they will
be working for the
Harrison County Sheriff's Department.
By GEOFF PENDER
THE SUN HERALD
Friday, August 18, 2006
GULFPORT - An attorney for two police employees suing Long Beach said that Harrison County is likely to be added as a defendant, especially if the county continues to run the city Police Department.
It's not the responsibility of the employees to determine who runs the Long Beach Police Department.
Long Beach Police Capt. Don Wells and dispatcher Doris King are two of five employees suing Long Beach, claiming harassment. One employee, Georgette Harrell, claimed that former Police Chief Tom Bishop had repeatedly sexually harassed her. The other employees claim they faced harassment and retaliation because they supported Harrell's claim and talked to investigators from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commiss- ion.
The best thing to do in the case of the five employees suing the city of Long Beach is the fire them.
They will still be able to sue, but the city can hire five new employees which are not destabilizing the police department.
Bishop resigned amid the allega- tions.
When the Mayor and Aldermen asked Bishop to step down as police chief, he was fired.
But yet the city made a new position in order the keep Bishop on the taxpayers payroll.
Recently, Maj. Randy Cook, on loan from the Harrison County Sheriff's Department, took over temporary leadership of the troubled department. Tonight, county Sheriff George Payne Jr. is expected to propose to city aldermen that his department permanently take over.
Ray Necaise Jr., attorney for Wells and King, said the harassment and retaliation aimed at his clients has continued since the county took over.
“What happened is the (Long Beach) mayor and Board of Aldermen want to get back at these people, so they've hatched an idea to turn law enforcement over to the county,” Necaise said. He believes that Cook has been following orders from Mayor Robert Bass to “make these people disappear who are not loyal to the crown of Bass, to his autocracy,” and that the proposed county takeover is an effort to sidestep civil-service protection of police employees.
The Harrison County Board of Supervisors on Monday received a letter from Necaise threatening to add the county to the lawsuit.
After meeting behind closed doors, neither supervisors nor Sheriff's Department officials had much comment about it.
“We're hoping we don't have any liability in this,” said Supervisor Larry Benefield.
“This is the first we've heard about this,” said Sheriff's Maj. Melvin Brisolara. “I don't see how we could be involved in litigation that happened prior to us being there.”
Mayor Bass could not be reached to comment.
The EEOC has already said that evidence indicates the city has retaliated against Wells and another high-ranking police officer for helping Harrell with her sexual harassment complaint