JONESBORO, Ark. – Following a Jonesboro City Council meeting where the situation was referenced several times, a statement on the termination of Rachel Anderson was issued by the City Tuesday night.
Below is the full release as it appears in the release sent to media contacts following the city council meeting:
Statement from Police Chief Rick Elliott concerning dismissal of video analyst Rachel Anderson:
This is a person the mayor and I appointed for a specific role after we determined to create a real-time crime center. The mayor created a civilian role for her, upon her request. And I am deeply disappointed that she made misrepresentations and spoke inappropriately.
She knew intentionally that she was undermining the process. She knew the design was in its infancy and her input would be sought when appropriate. So she made a conscious decision that could jeopardize a critical funding stream violated our grievance policy, violating our code of ethics policy, employee conduct policy, as well as sections of the City Employee Handbook, all of which have been approved by City Council.
Her comments on how the Center functions are not true. It has a multi-function task, and can be performed remotely, and she has accessed it many times at home.
She said of 1,100 cases, all but 100 were investigations. In truth, accident-related video for on-scene and FOIA requests account for most uses. Other staff members say it’s closer to a 50-50 ratio.
She wrote that the mayor and his administration “haven’t spent 10 minutes in the RTCC in three years since he was elected.”
In truth, the mayor is very familiar with the center’s operation and daily capabilities. He and Rachel have together made several presentations about it.
She stood before City Council and read a scripted statement that she authored during her work hours. She sent the script to co-worker Wade Shapp for his review and approval shortly before her presentation. Shapp was ill and said he did not check his email until after the meeting. Without Shapp’s consent, she spoke on his behalf.
Her statements and actions are considered to be arrogant and insubordinate, and she certainly spoke ill of a project that is being worked on. Therefore, I felt betrayed by her actions. I no longer have any faith or confidence in her as an employee that she can or will follow my direction of operations in the Jonesboro Police Department.
Rachel Anderson responded to each assertion made in the press release above in an exclusive interview with NEA Report. Read her responses and more here.
Anderson Responds to Police Chief’s Statement About Termination
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