Centralia enlists law firm to investigate ‘impropriety’ in city government
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The City of Centralia says it has asked a law firm to look into "recent allegations of impropriety" in the city government.
The city announced the move in a news release Friday but did not specify what type of allegations have been leveled or against whom.
"Any allegations of this nature are taken very seriously, and the City is dedicated to investigating allegations in a fair and impartial manner," the release says.
The city government has been under scrutiny after multiple departures from the police department.
Three Centralia police officers resigned Thursday after Chief Bob Bias took early retirement effective this Sunday. One officer mentioned a lack of transparency from the city as a reason why he resigned.
Residents also voiced their concerns over the city administrator and the mayor's handling of the situation.
The Mayor addressed the new announcements Friday with ABC 17 News crews.
"As the mayor of this town, I want to make sure that people understand that we are engaged in taking precautions and we are engaged in doing things the right way - as we always have as far as I'm concerned," said Chris Cox, Centralia Mayor.
Cox pointed to communication among city employees as the main factor in the situation.
"Bottom line is I think we could've communicated better what's going on," Cox said.
The city also announced the Boone County Sheriff's Office would be helping with staffing for the police department.
"The concern is making sure that we have staffing," Cox said. "That is adequate for those folks on duty, to be safe, and also for the citizens safety."
Centralia City Administrator Heather Russell told ABC 17 News on Sept. 30 that the Centralia Police Department had nine full-time sworn officers, one code enforcement officer and a civilian support staff of six.
Cox Friday said the department had five full time officers.
The Boone County Sheriff's Office has agreed to help provide law enforcement services while Centralia is short on officers. The city's release Friday also said city leaders met with Sheriff Dwayne Carey to work out a plan that will cover the city around the clock.
Sheriff's office Capt. Brian Leer said Friday morning authorities were still trying to figure out what kind of call volume Centralia's dispatch center has to determine what demand answering calls in the town will place on deputies.
"it'll enable them to maybe drop down a little bit in staffing and know that they've got some backup readily available," Leer said. "So it's, It's a compromise that we, we think is going to work well for both agencies in the short term."
In an earlier release, the City of Centralia said it would continue to search for a new police chief and promote an interim chief from inside the department.
