For further review
If Officer William Vollberg cannot appear for a legally issued subpoena because he is “answering to the taxpayers,” [“Officer Ignores Review-Board Subpoena,” March 26], let’s show him a couple of other items that tax money dutifully provides — namely handcuffs and the inside of a jail cell.
Why should a cop be allowed to defy a city ordinance while the average citizen would have a warrant out for their arrest for failing to appear?
Justice may be blind, but with heightened senses she can certainly smell hubris. No judge would allow such contempt of their courtrooms, or mp3 playing during proceedings. Lt. Jennifer Beidle [who is in charge of the police department’s policies regarding the review board] should have announced that after Sgt. Vollberg’s release, he would be suspended without pay until such time that he appeared before the board as required, and apologize to the members for his unprofessional conduct.
The Citizen Police Review Board is only as powerful as it can compel accused officers to appear. A dangerous precedent is set when they allow individuals to thumb their noses at subpoenas, which just becomes a glorified request if no consequences follow [from not responding to it]. Police uphold the law first and foremost by obeying it themselves.
— Dan Warner, West View
This article appears in Apr 10-16, 2008.
The CPRB filed a petition to enforce the subject subpoena against Vollberg with the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas on 3/31/08. The docket number is GD 08-006408. This is the proper procedure employed to seek a Court Order directing Vollberg to comply with the subpoena or face contempt of court charges. The last time an officer failed to comply with a CPRB subpoena was in 2001. The Court ordered that officer to comply and he did. The CPRB does not tolerate defiance of a properly issued CPRB subpoena. We have pursued, and will continue to pursue, appropriate legal remedies to this type of misconduct.