THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 18, 1996 TAG: 9602170144
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Medium: 53 lines
The son of a high-ranking police officer is accused of breaking into the home of the vice mayor to commit grand larceny. The case is such a hot potato that the Commonwealth's attorney immediately passes it off to an out-of-town prosecutor. Rumors abound that the police department's handling of the investigation was not entirely on the up and up.
What do you do if you're chief of police?
Do you go public with what you know about the investigation? Do you invite questions? Do you issue a full report to the city manager and city council on how the case was handled? Do you reassure citizens that the integrity of their police force has not been compromised?
Or do you keep the whole thing quiet? Maybe conduct an internal investigation, but keep a tight lid on the outcome? Do you sit tight and hope the whole matter will blow over with time?
Those are some of the choices that Chesapeake Police Chief Ian M. Shipley Jr. apparently has been faced with since the 25-year-old son of Capt. William L. Spruill, his administrative aide, was charged with stealing a four-wheel drive vehicle from the home of Vice Mayor Robert T. Nance Jr.
To complicate the situation further, the police recently have handled two other cases involving the families of prominent public officials. The son of City Councilman John W. Butt was indicted in November for buying, receiving and concealing stolen property, and the son of Sheriff's Department Capt. William Brickhouse was indicted later for receiving stolen goods.
Respect for the law demands that citizens be confident that police do not have one set of standards for the relatives of powerful and influential people and another for the rest of us. Even the appearance of impropriety in such cases must be avoided, which is why Commonwealth's Attorney David L. Williams was right to remove himself and his office from the Spruill case.
Sadly, Chesapeake has a history of abuse of power by persons in authority. Scandal at the Municipal Center is hardly new to citizens here. Who can blame them for finding suspicions of misconduct in the police department believable?
Now that gossip about the case has finally broken into the public forum, Chief Shipley has run out of options. The City Council called him in Friday to explain what he knows. State and federal law enforcement officials reportedly are interested, too.
Chief Shipley has no choice now but to make sure that the facts - all of them - are laid out for everyone to see. If he can't or won't do that, citizens are justified in wondering why. by CNB