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Campbell’s ex-police chief pleads guilty to four misdemeanor charges
By Sarah Lehr
CAMPBELL
Andrew Rauzan, a former Campbell police chief, pleaded guilty Monday to four misdemeanor counts of unauthorized use of property and agreed to never again work as a police officer.
Judge Lou D’Apolito of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court sentenced Rauzan, 43, to one year’s probation and a $1,000 fine.
The charges, filed by Daniel Kasaris, a special prosecutor with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, and Paul Gains, Mahoning County prosecutor, pertain to unauthorized use of the Ohio Law Enforcement Gateway database. OHLEG is a system that allows law-enforcement agencies to share data.
Rauzan admitted he improperly used the database on four occasions between May 2013 and July 2015, according to a bill of information filed Aug. 8.
As part of the plea deal, Rauzan agreed to forfeit his Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy certificate. Rauzan, an attorney, also will have to self-report the charges to the Ohio Bar Association.
“Mr. Rauzan finds himself in a position he never thought he’d be in,” said Damian Billak, who represented Rauzan. “He’s got a law degree, but he’s also agreed to forfeit what he dedicated his life to, which is a career in law enforcement.”
Billak said Rauzan did not use the information for personal or financial gain. Judge D’Apolito noted Monday that Rauzan could have obtained the information by following the proper process.
“Just very bad judgment by a police officer, as well as an attorney of law,” the judge said during the sentencing.
Mayor Nick Phillips had fired Rauzan in November 2016 after a woman, who had a warrant out for her arrest at the time of the incident, came forward to say Rauzan had sexually harassed her in the police gym in July 2016. Phillips contacted the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, a division of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, about the allegations, which prompted Kasaris’ investigation of Rauzan. Prosecutors became aware of Rauzan’s misuse of the OHLEG system during the course of that investigation.
After Rauzan’s firing, a police department employee also came forward to say that Rauzan had sexually harassed her in 2013 and 2015. Rauzan denies the sexual-harassment allegations.
Kasaris confirmed Monday that the state’s investigation is closed. Rauzan’s misuse of the database did not relate directly to the initial allegations of sexual harassment, according to Ohio Attorney General’s Office spokeswoman Jill Del Greco.
“While it is a crime in and of itself to use OHLEG for non-law-enforcement purposes, the investigation did not find that the defendant used the information obtained through OHLEG for additional criminal purposes,” she wrote in an email.
Del Greco said BCI agents fully investigated the allegations of sexual harassment but did not find sufficient evidence for criminal prosecution.
In January, Rauzan reached an agreement with the city in which he was allowed to resign in exchange for the city’s rescinding his firing. That agreement prohibits Rauzan from suing the city about the circumstances of his suspension, termination or resignation. It also prohibits Rauzan from suing the mayor, law director and civil-service commission members about those circumstances.
In a prepared statement, however, Rauzan indicated he will be taking legal action. No lawsuit had been filed as of Monday afternoon.
“Regarding the rest of the false, defamatory and twisted trash being purported about me, I have sought counsel and in the near future will be taking legal action against those individuals who have made these baseless public claims about me simply to embarrass, harass and defame me,” Rauzan said. “This trash is pure political retaliation against me by a mad person, designed with the purpose of tormenting my life. This matter will also be settled soon in a court of law.”
The statement does not name the person or people to whom Rauzan is referring. Billak said he could not comment on the statement, as he does not handle civil lawsuits and is not representing Rauzan in that matter.
Rauzan was sworn in as Campbell’s police chief in 2013. He first became a full-time officer for the department in 1998, according to Vindicator files.
“It’s important to remember that no one is above the law – no lawyer, no policeman,” Judge D’Apolito said Monday before accepting the plea deal recommended by the prosecution and defense. “But you also have to remember that no one is beneath the law. That is, you should not be treated any differently than anyone else who appears in front of me.”