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Girard ex-chief grilled at hearing
The first hearing lasted nearly four hours with a second session planned for next week.
GIRARD — A hearing to determine if former police Chief Frank Bigowsky will regain the top cop position is under way.
Bigowsky and Safety Service Director Jerry Lambert divided nearly four hours in front of the Niles Civil Service Commission with attorneys for Bigowsky on one side and attorneys for the city on the other. The hearing will resume at 1 p.m. next Wednesday in city council chambers.
Bigowsky is charged with teaching private classes while on city time, engaging in conduct that undermines the civil service hiring process and disregarding a valid direct order to meet daily with the mayor, among other things.
The charges were lodged shortly after a meeting with Lambert and Mayor James Melfi at which Bigowsky said the mayor was unprofessional and threatening. Bigowsky then sent a letter of complaint to the civil service commission.
As a result of the charges against him, Bigowsky was demoted to patrolman, but he is fighting that demotion.
Atty. Eugene Nevada, representing the city, asked Bigowsky to describe the meeting with Lambert and Melfi that led to the letter to the civil service commission. Bigowsky told why he felt threatened and if his job was in jeopardy.
“I was ordered to sit. I was ordered to sit like a dog and felt that if I did not sit or went for the door, [Melfi] would have put his hands on me,” Bigowsky said.
Bigowsky went on to say that Melfi had blocked the door to the office in which the meeting took place, and Lambert did not intervene in the situation.
Lambert denied that Melfi ever blocked the door to the office. He also said the mayor did not do anything that could be interpreted as threatening.
Nevada questioned Bigowsky about time spent teaching that the city determined should have been spent fulfilling duties as police chief. Bigowsky admitted teaching several courses in police study, but said he always put in a 40-hour work week.
“While I am not here on duty, the captain in charge was to supervise the department,” Bigowsky said. “As the chief of police, I have the right to schedule myself at times I see necessary.”
Lambert later told the commission the city felt the hours of teaching were conducted when Bigowsky should have been working, and that the chief had no permission to take the time off from the office.
He labeled the teaching as “double dipping” and said the administration takes issue with that.
Lambert admitted during cross-examination from Bigowsky’s lawyer Dennis Haines that the chief did change his teaching schedule to nights after being ordered to do so.
Another major point of discussion during the hearing was the city’s contention that Bigowsky failed to reduce overtime expenditures in the police department.
Bigowsky told commission members that overtime had been an issue since 2003 and 2004 when police ranks were reduced from 22 to 14 officers. He said he consistently asked for additional officers to bring the amount of overtime under control.
Lambert said the administration wanted to see something more than a request for additional officers. He said Bigowsky never produced a plan that would reduce overtime costs to the satisfaction of the administration.
Nevada asked Bigowsky about the undermining of the hiring process.
The city contends Bigowsky tried to get a candidate who did not rank high enough on the list of prospective candidates moved up on the list so he could be considered for a job as city police officer. Bigowsky said he sent out letters only asking if some of the candidates on the list wished to remain in consideration.
Lambert told the commission that Bigowsky had no authorization to send letters to anyone. He said Bigowsky was simply asked to supply background checks for the top 10 candidates but instead supplied the names of two candidates he wanted to see hired.
jgoodwin@vindy.com