Miner Board rules police chief violated ordinances at impeachment hearing

MINER, Mo. — After nearly three hours of testimony, the Miner Board of Alderman unanimously agreed that Miner Police Chief Chris Griggs violated two city ordinances during impeachment proceedings Monday night.

The Miner Board, which sat as a Board of Impeachment, found that Griggs failed to work the required hours and refused to follow the direction of the Board regarding the employment of part-time dispatcher Laura Adams.

According to city attorney Tabatha Thurman, “the Board will now issue findings of facts and conclusions of law to the Chief in a timely manner,” to make the impeachment official. Then Griggs and his attorney, Jim McClellan, will appeal to a higher court. Documents would impeach him, however not a final order until ruled on by either the circuit court or court of appeals.

Laura Adams plays an audio recording of her being fired by Miner Police Chief Chris Griggs during a City of Miner Board of Impeachment Hearing Monday night in the Miner Court Room. (David Jenkins/Standard Democrat)

Laura Adams plays an audio recording of her being fired by Miner Police Chief Chris Griggs during a City of Miner Board of Impeachment Hearing Monday night in the Miner Court Room. (David Jenkins/Standard Democrat)

The hearing stemmed from the Miner Board having Thurman draft Articles of Impeachment for Griggs on four violations on Feb. 26. Two of the violations, one dealing with workplace bullying and the other, dealing with improper use of the city’s computer, were dropped Monday night due to lack of witnesses.

Miner City Clerk Darrin Skinner testified at the hearing that throughout the past several years, the Board has had issues with Griggs not fulfilling a 40-hour work week. Skinner said it has taken a financial toll on the city by having to pay overtime to staff to make up for the hours not worked and for paying the Chief’s full salary when he wasn’t working the hours required.

Skinner testified there had been numerous complaints about Griggs’ failure to work the required hours in open meetings and in a Board meeting in July of 2018, he was required to log his hours with dispatchers.

In the six months since he was supposed to be logging his hours, Skinner said only five weeks did Griggs log the appropriate 40 hours, missing “approximately 374 hours in six months.”

Skinner said the missed hours were putting a financial strain on the City.

“It was $8,384.60 in actual wages but once you factor in the payroll tax and other benefits of an employee, then it will reach well above $10,000,” Skinner said.

During cross examination, Skinner admitted that in 2013 he ran against Griggs for Chief of Police and lost and that neither Griggs nor any of the dispatchers signed the time sheets. He also said that Griggs is the only city employee who did not use a time card.

Skinner also said he is aware the Griggs is on call 24 hours a day, that members of the Board have contacted the Chief during the early morning hours and that he covers shifts for other officers.

McClellan asked Skinner how much the city spent on investigating the Chief, when the earlier testimony said the City was concerned about money.

Skinner said the city had spent approximately $7,700 that came from taxpayer money with Griggs the only target of the investigation.

Adams also testified that on three occasions she was relieved of her duties as dispatcher in September and early October of 2018. The first two times, Adams said she was told she was terminated by her supervisor, Sonny Riley over the telephone. Both of those times she was reinstated by the Board.

After being put back on the staff in early October by the Board, Adams said she was told by Griggs that she was no longer employed and produced an audio recording of the conversation.

After a short recess for the attorneys to hear the recording in private, Adams played the recording at the hearing. In the recording, Griggs told Adams that a Board member cannot rehire her and that “everyone who works (at the police department) falls under my direction.”

He told Adams that he didn’t feel they needed her anymore.

Adams, who applied for a full-time position as a dispatcher and was not hired, attempted to get an order of protection against Griggs after the phone call. McClellan questioned Adams about the order in which she said she feared for her life.

“He never made any threats did he,” McClellan asked.

“No,” Adams replied.

McClellan also asked during cross examination about her using MULES, a state program where law enforcement can find license plate numbers or warrants, inappropriately for her brother in-law. Adams said she wasn’t aware she was ever under investigation for her use of MULES but said she did have her MULES access revoked, which has hurt her finding employment elsewhere.

McClellan asked her and Skinner, who was recalled, if they knew that the Missouri State Highway Patrol is the only entity that can revoke MULES access. They both agreed, however, Skinner said the request has to come from the “chief law enforcement officer.”

Skinner also testified that Griggs refused to come to 13 different Board meetings where the Adams situation as well as scheduling was to be discussed. The Board eventually took scheduling away from the Chief and assigned a captain to do all scheduling.

“He didn’t show up so whatever he gets is his fault,” McClellan remarked during questioning.

William Keaney, a private investigator in St. Louis, also began to testify on the improper use of a city computer. However when the issue of a video found on Griggs’ city computer came up, McClellan objected since the investigator was not part of the company who found the video. Since nobody from Forensic Computer Services was there to testify, the article was withdrawn.

Before the hearing, Griggs’ attorney, Jim McClellan, asked for a continuance for several different reasons. One reason was McClellan said he didn’t feel the Board could be impartial since Griggs has filed a lawsuit against them on Nov. 16, 2018. There were three counts to the suit, which includes a preliminary injunction against the removal of his computer while claiming unless restrained, the Board will “impede the effective enforcement of the law, breach confidential information and violate protected constitutional and privacy rights” of Griggs and others whose names may be contained in the computer. The suit also contained a defamation claim made by Griggs. The suit is still in the process of being adjudicated.

Thurman advised the Board before the hearing began that “if you cannot sit here today and be fair and impartial then recuse yourself because it will be overturned.”

Acting Mayor Bill James, said “I think we can all render a fair hearing,” and overruled the motion to continue.

McClellan also made a motion to remove James from the proceedings because, according to McClellan, he had to obtain attorneys for the lawsuit and pay for them out of his own pocket which James denied, as he did with most of McClellan’s requests and objections throughout the hearing.