Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa Theetge will not resign and wants to remain the leader of the city’s police, her attorney told the media on Oct. 21.
Attorney Stephen Imm said Theetge is a scapegoat for the rising concerns over crime in the city. At a news conference in his law firm’s Downtown office, he was flanked by Theetge, her husband and two of her brothers.
A day earlier, City Manager Sheryl Long placed Theetge on paid administrative leave and announced an internal investigation on the effectiveness of her leadership. Long named Assistant Chief Adam Hennie as the interim chief.
‘They’re looking for a scalp’
Imm took aim at Long and Mayor Aftab Pureval.
“They’re looking for a scalp,” Imm said. “They’re looking for a scapegoat.”
News broke last week that the city and police chief were negotiating for the chief to resign. Theetge’s leadership has come under scrutiny following a series of high-profile crimes that have drawn national attention, including the killing of Patrick Heringer and a widely shared video of a fight in Downtown.
The city manager asked the chief Oct. 15 to return home from a conference in Denver. Theetge was then asked to resign from her $203,000-a-year job, Imm said. The city didn’t give a reason, he said. Theetge refused. Imm wouldn’t say whether the city offered a severance package.
Theetge’s contract with the city, obtained by The Enquirer, doesn’t mention severance. It outlines that the chief participates in the police pension and has the ability to purchase her department firearm upon retirement.
Pureval said he did not direct Theetge’s ouster
Imm said he believes the decision to force Theetge out came at the direction of Pureval. Pureval, in a texted statement to The Enquirer, said he did not direct this.
“This is an administrative issue, and it’s the city manager’s decision,” Pureval said in the statement.
Why did the chief fall out of favor?
Whether he directed it or not, there were signs the relationship between Pureval and Theetge was strained. Right after the Oct. 13 shooting on Fountain Square, Pureval would not say whether he had confidence in the chief. Pureval said changes needed to be considered.
A few months earlier, Pureval hadn’t hesitated to say he had confidence in the chief.
When asked what changed, Imm said the Fountain Square shooting may have been the biggest factor in what soured the relationship.
“I’ll put it this way: She was concerned that the city might try to do something like this,” Imm said. “She was concerned that they might see her as a somebody that they could sacrifice for political purposes.”
Internal investigation slammed
Imm slammed the city’s internal investigation, saying “the sentence has already been passed.” He said the city is now looking for a crime.
“Chief Theetge stands before you today accused of no wrongdoing and having done nothing to deserve this action,” Imm said.
Long hasn’t elaborated on the nature of the investigation beyond it being on “the effectiveness of her leadership.”
City manager and mayor respond
Fifteen minutes after the start of the news conference, Long released a statement commending Theetge’s decades of service to the city.
“We respect Chief Theetge’s decades of service to the City of Cincinnati. Public safety is this Administration’s top priority and we are responsible for delivering on that for the public,” Long said. “The City remains committed to a fair and transparent process that protects both the department and the people we serve.”
“Interim Chief Hennie’s strong operational experience and steady leadership will help ensure stability as we complete this investigation,” Long added.
Almost two hours after the start of the press conference, the mayor released a statement that didn’t address any of the allegations made by Theetge’s attorney. Pureval said in the statement that he was grateful for Theetge’s years of service and had confidence in Hennie and Long. The mayor and city manager met with the interim chief and the assistant chief, he said.
“During that meeting, we discussed his planned emphasis on greater use of technology, visibility and rapid response to critical incidents,” Pureval said in the statment.
City stymied Theetge’s proposals, attorney says
Imm said that the chief had “several proposals” to improve the uptick in crime Downtown that were vetoed by the city administration.
One of those proposals was for the mayor to engage with county judges to reduce the number of repeat offenders being released, Imm said. That proposal was vetoed, he said.
The chief has no desire or intention of resigning, he said. Imm said that they are not negotiating an exit but a way to get her back to work.
“She is a dedicated public servant. This is in her blood, in her DNA. She wants nothing more than to be a public servant and to lead the law enforcement division of the City of Cincinnati,” Imm said.
“She’s being used as a political scapegoat and a political pawn,” Imm said. “She deserves better than that.”
What’s next?
No timetable has been given for when the city manager will complete her investigation or take action. Voters in 2001 approved Issue 5, giving the city manager the power to hire and fire the police chief and fire chief.
Imm drew parallels to former Cincinnati Fire Chief Michael Washington, who is currently suing the city for his firing by Long in 2023. Imm is also representing Washington.
A federal judge in August allowed Washington’s lawsuit to proceed, finding the city failed to give Washington due process before firing him.
Imm said the city needs a just cause to fire Theetge.
Whether Theetge will file anything or challenge anything in court before the city takes action, her attorneys wouldn’t say, other than saying they’re keeping all options open.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Attorney says politics is behind push to remove Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa Theetge
Reporting by David Ferrara and Scott Wartman, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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