MAYOR MARK STODOLA MAKES FALSE STATEMENT ABOUT CONFEDERATE STATUES ON CITY OWNED PROPERTY

Once again Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola has provided clear and convincing evidence that it is time for him to step down as mayor and not seek re-election.

In a statement released to Little Rock television station KATV in response to questions about what will be the future of Arkansas’ Confederate monuments following unrest in major cities across the country as several local and state governments decide to remove confederate monuments, Stodola claimed that there were no Confederate statues on city owned property in Little Rock.

Apparently the mayor has never visited city owned McArthur Park because right in front of the old Tower Building (now the home of the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History) is the 24 foot tall prominent "Lest we forget" statue that lauds the defense of Little Rock by secessionist forces that took control of the building at the onset of the Civil War.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_to_Company_A,_Capitol_Guards

WRITING ON THE BASE OF THE STATUE SAYS ITS WAS ERECTED BY THE CITIZENS OF LITTLE ROCK

Perhaps the  Little Rock Racial and Cultural Diversity Commission  will take the lead and recommend that the statue be removed.

#CLEANOUTLRCITYHALL

 

POLICY AT LRPD TO NOT TICKET OFFICERS VIOLATING LAWS IS INDICATIVE OF CORRUPTION - WEAK & INNEFECTIVE CITY LEADERS ALLOW SPECIAL TREATMENT

 

IF YOU CAUSE AN ACCIDENT IN LR YOU GET A TICKET - UNLESS YOU ARE THE CHIEF OF POLICE OR ANY OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER

What happens if you follow to close to another vehicle and run into it?  You will no doubt receive a ticket citing Arkansas Code Annotated § 27-51-305. 

That is unless your are a on or off-duty law enforcement officer.

LRPD has established an illegal policy/procedure that violates laws of the State of Arkansas and Little Rock Municipal Ordinances. If any law enforcement officer is involved in an accident, on or off duty, even if they caused the accident, no citation is issued - like it would be to any citizen - instead a secretive process takes place before a review board which then makes a decision about a ticket.  No doubt the decisions of this secretive panel are favorable to the officer involved and no ticket results.

LR MUNICIPAL ORDINANCE SEC. 32-36

Even a LRPD internal rule/regulation states that laws are to be enforced.

This process is an affront to the established system of justice in our city and state and ipso facto places these officers above the law.

If an officer causes an accident, they should be immediately issued a ticket by a responding officer and if the officer wants to contest the ticket, he or she should then appear at Traffic Court like any other individual does.

It took months of making inquiries to find out why LRPD and city leadership would not respond to FOI requests for information about the illegal process.

After the publisher of this blog tired of lack of transparency and the city's failure to comply with FOI requests, he addressed the LR Board of Directors about the matter at a June meeting, an answer was finally reluctantly provided. 

What sparked our interest in this matter was two accidents that LRPD Chief Kenton Tremar Buckner was involved in and apparently from incident reports we obtained the cause of each accident.

Buckner did not receive a ticket in either incident.  Smell the stink of corruption?

The first accident occurred on Sunday, April 10, 2016 in the parking lot of David Family Diner.

DAVID FAMILY DINER

Buckner had just finished eating lunch and when backing out of a parking space in his city issued vehicle - a 2014 Chevrolet Tahoe, he rammed into a vehicle being driven by Christopher Green. Green had two small children in his vehicle.

The LRPD Officer that responded, Sgt. Robert Oldham,  made the notation that Buckner stated he was backing out of a parking space and rammed into Green's vehicle.  Sgt. Oldham noted that Buckner had driven in a "careless and prohibited manner, improper backing", which caused the accident.

Buckner did not receive a ticket for causing the accident.

We know that LRPD will issue tickets in similar incidents as the publisher of this blog had a family member involved is a similar accident and a ticket was issued by LRPD.

Fast forward to March of this year.  

On March 2nd at approximately 5:40 p.m., Chief Buckner was driving on east Markham Street (just past the Pulaski County Courthouse - heading for the bar district). He was following the vehicle in front of him too closely and when the driver of that vehicle, Robert Kort,  had to stop to allow a pedestrian to cross the street Buckner rammed into his vehicle.

LRPD Officer Fran Watkins was the responding officer and she marked on page 10 of the accident report that her boss, Chief Bucker was following too closely.

As in the previous accident, Buckner was not issued a ticket.

This is incredible. If any regular citizen did what Buckner did, they would have received a ticket in a heartbeat.  

It's no wonder that the citizens of Little Rock have little confidence or respect for their police department when this kind of malfeasance and corruption is a regular occurrence. Add the fact that over half of the uniformed officers refuse to live in Little Rock due to crime and the failed public school system (mostly white officers) and get to use police cars to drive to and from work - one officer lives in Malvern and get to travel to and from work on our dime every day- the public has had enough and is demanding changes.

We sent a Freedom of Information Request to the city to obtain a copy of any policy or procedure regarding vehicles issued to department heads.

That is also unbelievable.  Every department in the city of Little Rock that permits an employee to use a city owned vehicle has a written policy/procedure regarding vehicle use.

LRPD policy prohibits personal use of a city owned vehicle, the exception being getting a free ride to and from work.   

Buckner has two personal vehicles. A 2000 Mercedes-Benz and a 1966 Cadillac. 

CHIEF BUCKNER'S PERSONAL PIMP RIDES

He had them when he moved to Little Rock after being hired as Chief of Police.

We question his use and misuse of his city provided ride when he has two of his own personal vehicles he could to go to church, go eat lunch on weekends and after work, go to his favorite bar to get a few glasses of Bourbon or other personal errands.

We suspect he is too cheap to purchase his own gas. Certainly with the frequency he causes accidents it's nice to pass the cost of insurance claim payouts to the city's insurance carrier.  And with no citations issued his own insurance company has no idea that he had been the cause of accidents so they can raise his rates as he is a risk.

Buckner refused to respond to our inquiry about this matter.  Just about what you would expect from an individual that lacks character and is not man enough  deal with a pressing situation.

Public dissatisfaction and unrest with Little Rock city leadership is at an all time high.  Several individuals have indicated their intention to run for Mayor and the Board of Directors to oppose the current office holders.

It's time to clean house at city hall.  


******

After obtaining a copy of the letter the Little Rock Black Police Officers Association sent the LR Board of Directors this week, it appears that there is a third accident that must have happened prior the the one in 2016.  We will make inquires and post an update of our findings.

CENTRAL ARKANSAS WATER EMPLOYEE CAUGHT LITTERING ON I-630

An employee of Central Arkansas Water was caught tossing papers out of a vehicle on I-630 this afternoon.

Central Arkansas Water is a public owned utility that was created in 2001 by combining the Little Rock and North Little Rock city water departments.

Central Arkansas Water's Commissioners are appointed by the Little Rock board of Director's (4 members)  and the North Little Rock City Council (3 members). 

Take a look at the video of the incident captured on a dash camera.

In Arkansas it is against the law to litter.

LRPD BLACK OFFICERS ASSOCIATION ALLEGES RACIAL DISCRIMINATION BY CHIEF - WHITE LRFOP PRESIDENT SAYS THEY LACK INTELLIGENCE

The Little Rock Black Police Officers Association sent a letter via email to the Little Rock City Board of Directors alleging racial discrimination by Police Chief Kenton Buckner.

Members of the LRBPA say they're speaking out now after repeated attempts to bring their grievances to Chief Buckner and city manager Bruce Moore.

In the letter, the organization members are calling for an independent investigation into the “discrimination, inequities and disparaging treatment of minority officers and supervisors under the command of Chief Kenton Buckner.”

LRPD CHIEF BUCKNER AND HIS GOLDEN DILDO AWARD - GIVEN AFTER LOSING HIS GUN

They're also asking for Buckner to be disciplined if found to be not in compliance with policy, even including termination.

In the letter, they write that Buckner has displayed conduct unbecoming of a chief.

Sgt. Willie Davis is just one of the members that says Buckner has repeatedly shown he is not in support of minority officers.

LRPD SGT.WILLIE DAVIS

"The first thing he said was to get rid of the black police association. There was no need for one. Then he tried to explain why. That insulted a lot of us,” Davis said.

The letter alleges discrimination against minorities for promotions and transfers as well as inconsistency in discipline procedure with white and black officers and supervisors.

"It's our responsibility to make the chief, the city manager and the governor accountable to the actions the city is making and the things they do in their department,” Davis said.

They also allege a failure to investigate violations of white commanders and alleges preferential treatment given to white supervisors for educational training opportunities.

Sgt. Davis says he's been concerned with the chief's treatment of African American officers for some time.

"To say that he's black he would be for black, I wouldn't go that far. I'm not saying he's totally against black, but the appearance and what we're seeing as an organization concern us. So I can't say whether he's pro black or pro white, but the appearance is what our concern is, it appears that way,” Davis said.

However, Sgt. John Gilchrist, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, says he disagrees with the allegations and there is no merit to them.

JOHN GILCHRIST - LRFOP PRESIDENT

"Anyone with any intelligence will see right through this and that I don't think any of this can be substantiated,” Gilchrist said.

This is going to get really interesting, as sources tell us that Gilchrist has personal knowledge that the allegations are indeed true as he was a witness to at least one of the incidents and was extremely upset at the time that it had occurred. The event was an officer that failed to pass a firearm qualification after three attempts and was relieved of duty.  The officer called Assistant Cheif Alice Fulk who permitted the officer to go back to the range and shoot until she qualified.  We understand that the officer passed after rest of the day at the range and using several hundred rounds of ammunition.

LRPD ASSISTANT CHIEF ALICE FULK

A spokesman for chief Buckner said he can't comment on the allegations as a part of department policy because it's a personnel issue.

LRPD CHIEF MIFFED ABOUT GETTING HELP FROM OUTSIDE AGENCIES - SKIPS GOVERNOR'S INITAL MEETING ABOUT LR CRIME EPIDEMIC

WHERE'S THE CHIEF?

At last night's meeting of the LR Board of Director's, several speakers called for the immediate resignation of LRPD Chief Kenton Bucker, and most of the city leaders in attendance.

Buckner became visibly agitated when board members suggest that he seek help from other law enforcement agencies, especially the Arkansas State Police.

Buckner addressed the city Board of Directors for 90 minutes Wednesday night on the gunfire, fielding questions from concerned officials and residents.

Few new details emerged from Wednesday’s board meeting. Buckner spoke generally about the gunfire and ongoing investigation.

The shooting is believed to have been sparked from a dispute and is likely related to a long-standing feud among two “rival organizations,” he has said. 

Memphis rapper Ricky Hampton, who performs under the name Finese 2Tymes and was present at the time of the shooting, was arrested Sunday on an aggravated-assault charge related to a shooting June 25 at Club Envy in Forrest City.

Hampton, 25, is considered a “person of interest” in the Little Rock nightclub shooting. No arrests had been made as of Thursday afternoon.

While violent crime is up in Little Rock this year, the numbers are still well below those of the 1990s, the height of gang violence, according to police. 

Since Jan. 1, instances of violent crime — which includes homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault — have increased 24 percent over 2016 figures. Nearly 1,400 cases have been reported so far this year.

Some Little Rock residents have attributed the uptick in violence to apathy on the part of city officials and what they perceive as racism against certain groups in the city.

City Director Lance Hines asked the police chief at the meeting — the board’s first since the mass shooting — whether state police could handle patrols in lower-crime areas to free up officers.

Buckner replied that he would rather not partner with the state on such efforts, noting differences in communities and a certain level of comfort with Little Rock police having “day-to-day contact” throughout the city.

Governor Hutchinson had requested that Buckner join him and attend a meeting of  a multi-agency effort targeted at aiding law enforcement officials in the state’s capital city, days after a shooting at a Little Rock nightclub left 28 people injured, scheduled to take place this afternoon.

Buckner refused to go and sent his underling, Assistant Chief Bewley.

At a press conference at the State Capitol this afternoon, Hutchinson said county, state and federal agencies will collaborate with the Little Rock Police Department as well as city leaders in addressing a recent uptick in gun violence, with agencies working collaboratively on information sharing as part of investigations.

"The urgent need is about safe streets and freedom from drive-by shootings and peace in our community," Hutchinson said.

Additional resources will also be offered through a joint investigative group utilizing the Arkansas State Police, FBI and Pulaski County sheriff’s office to enhance intelligence operations, target gang violence, provide greater enforcement of alcoholic beverage control laws, give more intense supervision of those out on parole and commit necessary jail space.

Among those present during Thursday’s news conference were Little Rock Assistant Police Chief Wayne Bewley, Arkansas State Police Director Bill Bryant, Pulaski County Sheriff Doc Holladay, acting U.S. Attorney Patrick Harris and Arkansas Community Correction Department Director Sheila Sharp.

“The looming cloud of violence harms us all,” Hutchinson said, noting that the escalating violence in recent years “causes worry." He referenced Little Rock as the state's seat of government as well as a center for tourism, medical services and economic development.

"If Little Rock is not safe, then we cannot succeed in our goals as a state," Hutchinson said.

The governor also addressed a understaffing issue within the Little Rock police force. About 70 officer positions remain unfilled, leaving the agency unable, at times, to adequately address problems in the city, he noted. 

"There is a need for additional resources in targeting, investigating and responding to the current threats," Hutchinson said.

Still, the governor stressed, the crime challenges in Little Rock must ultimately be solved by the resources of local law enforcement. 

Bewley of the Little Rock Police Department's Investigative Bureau stressed that police already partner with other agencies. This new effort, he said, will allow the department to "increase that footprint and focus on those that need the attention."

"This [gives us] the ability to investigate much deeper ... to actually make progress and see a change in this violence," Bewley said.

Brewley's comment appear to contradict the statements his boss made the previous evening at the LR Borad of Director's meeting.

After Thursday's news conference, Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola told reporters that while he wished recent gun violence hadn't happened, he believes that Little Rock Police Chief Kenton Buckner has done everything he can to address the issue, a face saving measure to try and calm down the beleaguered Chief.

Buckner was set to host a public forum at 6 p.m. Thursday at Hall High School as part of the Police Department's Chat with the Chief series and had plenty of time to join the Governor and the other agency heads to discuss issues that directly affect his department.

Social media has exploded with comments that Buckner is on his way out and if Mayor Stodola is not careful, the Governor will declare Martial Law in the Capitol City and remove him and the Board of Directors and appoint a Governor General to head city government.

 

TV STATION SCHOOLS POLICE DEPARTMENT ON DETECTIVE WORK ON SOURCES OF VIOLENCE

It turns out that Fox 16 News has some of the answers citizens of the city of Little Rock and one member of the Board of Director's have been asking about for months of its inept police chief concerning the spike in violence.

Who or what is causing the "seige" of Little Rock?

Turns out one of the gangs, err.... "rival parties" involved is the family of Dallas Cowboy football player Darren McFadden. 

In a report aired on Fox 16 yesterday evening, the station reveal something
Chief Buckner, the mayor and city manager have not, the identity of one of the "rival parties" involved in recent drive-by shooting.

Some readers will recall that McFadden had his own problems being underage (he was 18 at the time) at a sketchy Little Rock club back in 2006.

And again in 2008 when he was 20, at another sketchy Little Rock club.

The citizens of Little Rock have lost what little confidence they had in Chief Buckner and his officers (officers that don't live inside the city limits of Little Rock - more than half of them at last count- mostly the white ones at that) and the leadership at city hall.

The public has a right to know, with the identity known of one of the groups that are involved in the spike in violence, why the Chief is not deploying or utilizing the unit he established back in January, the one which members drive various rental cars (via that $300K allotted in a recent board meeting) to sit outside McFadden's mothers home where the other half of that "rival party" is driving by and shooting at folks.  Maybe they could apprehend someone by doing old fashion police work and not blame the public for not doing something.

If LRPD would enforce the curfew, quite of few of the individuals involved in the violence are minors, perhaps they could curb some of the violence in the pocket of the city where it is occurring.

 

MAYOR STODOLA MAKES INCREDIBLY INSENSITIVE AND MORONIC REMARK AT PRESS CONFERENCE ON CLUB SHOOTING

The Arkansas Times posted a enhanced video of a clip from a televised news conference held on Saturday afternoon at LR City Hall in which Mayor Mark Stodola is caught making a remark that voters need to remember at the next election.

A reporter asks LRPD Chief Buckner why there weren't any fatalities during the shooting spree at Power Ultra Lounge on Saturday morning and LR Mayor Mark Stodola is heard saying "bad shots" while turning to look at the white City Board of Directors members standing behind him.

City Director's Erma Hendrix, Doris Wright and Ken Richardson were noticeably absent from the press conference and no explanations have been forthcoming.

Mayor Stodola's uncalled for remark caught Chief Buckner off guard and made him stutter and stammer for a few seconds.

When it was Stodola's turned to speak he made the comment that the individuals that had guns in the club were felons and were not supposed to have guns, even though LRPD had no idea who actually fired shots in the club and if any were felons or had any type of criminal record at all.

Still no word from the mayor when the task force he formed back in 2015 to deal with violent crime will ever have a report or finding of their efforts. 

Word of a petition circulating for Stodola's removal from office is popping up on social media. We urge all citizens to sign it if they have the chance.