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Niles patrolman completes 30-day suspension for on-duty threat
By Ed Runyan
NILES
A Niles patrolman has served a 30-work-day suspension without pay for a November incident in which he threatened to kill a city man while grabbing him by his jacket while on duty.
According to an internal-affairs investigation carried out by two captains in the Niles Police Department, Patrolman Todd Mobley violated the department’s use-of-force policy through the actions and could have been charged criminally, but the victim did not file charges.
“Grabbing and restraining a person without legal reason to do so and/or threatening someone is not proper behavior for a police officer and is not in line with the Niles Police Department’s Use of Force policy,” according to findings in a report by captains Ken Criswell and Jay Holland.
Grabbing and restraining a person is authorized to protect the officer or others from physical harm, to restrain or subdue an individual or bring an unlawful situation safely and effectively under control, the report says.
Mobley also violated other departmental policies, such as failing to control his temper and asking another officer to turn off that officer’s in-car audio and video recorder, the report says.
Mobley returned to active duty Wednesday after signing a document containing information about his punishment.
He was off work on paid leave prior to Wednesday, but he served his 30-day suspension using vacation time, compensatory time and leave, said Terrance Dull, Niles law director.
A copy of Mobley’s internal-affairs investigation states Mobley went to Cherry Street at 8:39 p.m. Nov. 25 while making a traffic stop and threatened a man he knew for purportedly taking a gas can from Mobley’s mother’s house.
A woman who lives with the victim was with the victim, and said Mobley held the man’s jacket with two hands near the throat, pressed him against the patrolman’s cruiser and said, “Stay ... away from my mom’s house or you’re dead.”
Patrolman Michael Biddlestone was present at the time, and he confirmed that Mobley said either “kill” or “you’re dead” to the man with regard to Mobley’s mother’s house, the report said.
The incident took place in front of the woman’s children and another witness, police said. The woman, who said she has known Mobley for 18 years, filed a complaint with the department, leading to the investigation.
The Niles prosecutor, Terry Swauger, advised that Mobley’s behavior could result in a misdemeanor charge of menacing or aggravated menacing being filed if the victim wished to press charges.
Biddlestone said turning off his cruiser’s audio-video capabilities at Mobley’s request just prior to the incident wasn’t uncommon because Mobley sometimes interviews confidential informants, which is typically done with the system off. But Mobley committed five violations of the department’s policies regarding audio and video use.