The Board of Police Commissioners voted Wednesday to suspend Detective Sgt. Ron Goodmaster for three days without pay for violating the police department rules on “truthfulness.”
Goodmaster, a 21-year veteran of the Seymour Police Department, called the decision “a direct result” of his criticism of the department and said he was considering filing a grievance.
“I stand by what I said during the hearing,” Goodmaster said after the decision Wednesday. “I did not lie.”
What Did He Say?
Goodmaster was suspended under the department’s duty manual, section 2:1:6, which says officers must “speak the truth at all times and under all circumstances.”
But it is not clear what statement he made that allegedly violated that section of the department manual.
Police commissioners, Police Chief Michael Metzler and Goodmaster himself declined to go into specifics Wednesday night.
The board, in its motion to suspend Goodmaster, said the action is “related to an interview during an internal affairs investigation conducted by the Seymour Police Department.”
Goodmaster would only say it was the result of a comment made during a personal discussion “behind closed doors” regarding internal issues with the police department.
“I’m a critic of the mismanagement of this police department,” Goodmaster said. “I think this is a direct result of that criticism.”
Goodmaster said the allegation “has nothing to do with any of my activities during an official investigation” or with taking statements from people.
Internal Affairs Investigation
The police department in March launched an internal affairs investigation on Goodmaster, according to spokesperson Lt. Paul Satkowski.
The investigation was completed “several weeks ago” and the Board of Police Commissioners met on May 11 to discuss the results.
No vote was taken at that first meeting. Click here to download a PDF of the minutes.
The report has not been made public yet.
Satkowski said as a result of the investigation, he determined Goodmaster had violated the “truthfulness” section of the duty manual.
Split Vote
The issue divided the Board of Police Commissioners Wednesday. The members voted 3 – 2 to suspend Goodmaster.
Howard Simpson and James Simpson voted against the measure.
“I disagree with it,” James Simpson said during the meeting. “I believe there was no intent to deceive anybody.”
James Simpson said decisions like this “can’t be personality-based,” and brought up Goodmaster’s “21-year impeccable career.”
Howard Simpson, after the meeting, declined to elaborate on why he voted no.
Chief Metzler declined to comment on the issue, except to say that he would support the police commission’s decision.
