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twitterMetro admits to improper release of criminal history data
Experts say unauthorized access by 12 employees raises privacy, integrity concerns
Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009 | 2 a.m.
Sheriff Doug Gillespie
Sun Archives
- Suit filed over officer’s release of unauthorized information (11-17-2009)
- Metro sued over SCOPE (3-5-2009)
At least 12 Metro employees have been found since 2005 to be improperly accessing and disseminating criminal history information for reasons unrelated to police work, according to a Metro filing in a recent lawsuit.
Given Metro’s roughly 6,000 employees, that means one in 500, or 0.2 percent, have been caught improperly accessing and disseminating the information.
Civil libertarians said this raises privacy concerns and questions about the integrity of the department.
“I’m not suggesting there are bad intentions on the part of Metro’s leadership, but 12 breaches of that policy are definitely problematic,” said Gary Peck, former head of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada. “One would hope they would take it seriously,” he said.
The revelation in the court document stems from a lawsuit filed against Metro by Stephen Quinn, who claims that police and Department of Motor Vehicles information about him and associates was sought by the son of former Gov. Kenny Guinn in an apparent effort to try to discredit him.
Quinn, a contractor, was in a business dispute with the son, Jeff Guinn.
In court papers, Quinn charged that Guinn hired private detective James Thomas, a former Metro officer, who in turn obtained information on Quinn and dozens of his associates through his “contacts within Metro who continuously and systematically gave him access to confidential and proprietary information of citizens of the state of Nevada without their knowledge or consent.”
Quinn’s lawsuit against Thomas alleges defamation and invasion of privacy; his lawsuit against Metro alleges the department violated his civil rights.
Metro, in a motion for summary judgment this month, argued it can’t be held responsible for the unauthorized action of an employee who was violating department policy when he provided information to Thomas for the investigation of Quinn.
“LVMPD makes thousands of queries into SCOPE every day and since 2005, only 12 employees have been sustained for improperly accessing and disseminating (criminal history information),” Metro said. SCOPE is a law enforcement database.
A separate but related lawsuit Quinn filed against retired Metro Officer Paul Osuch and current Officer Kai Degner raises questions about the integrity of Metro’s own internal affairs unit.
Osuch was discovered to be the Metro officer giving information to private investigator Thomas about Quinn after Dana Gentry, executive producer of “Face to Face With Jon Ralston,” made inquiries with the department.
Gentry’s reporting revealed the dissemination of information by Metro on Quinn and many of his associates; they were not criminal suspects.
Sheriff Doug Gillespie acknowledged this year that a “ridiculous” number of database searches had been conducted on Quinn and his associates.
Osuch retired before he could be interviewed about the matter by Metro.
Not only were Metro Police acknowledged to have been helping feed information on behalf of Guinn, but the investigation into that leak was conducted by a detective, Kai Degner, who himself invested with Guinn.
Guinn faces reams of litigation with current and former investors who accuse him of self-dealing and bilking them; Guinn denies the allegations and has often countersued.
An additional internal affairs investigation faulted Degner for not disclosing his financial relationship with Guinn. He has since been knocked back to patrol and is awaiting possible discipline.
In an appearance this month on “Face to Face,” Gillespie, the sheriff, sought to reassure the public that he takes these issues seriously.
“We take that dissemination of information seriously. That’s a ... suspension on your first offense,” he said.
Gillespie said improper access of criminal databases poses not just privacy concerns but also carries significant risk for Metro, as the FBI controls the data and could limit Metro’s access to it if the bureau believes the information is not being used responsibly.
The sheriff said the vast majority of his employees behave properly.
“A lot of people have access to this data,” he said. “Overall I believe the majority of our employees adhere to the letter of the law and our policies.”
This is the second time in recent weeks that Southern Nevada residents have been confronted with news that public institutions have violated privacy protocols.
The release by Metro officers of private information to unauthorized recipients resembles the dissemination of confidential patient information at University Medical Center, which has triggered an FBI investigation into violation of patient privacy laws.
Allen Lichtenstein, general counsel of the ACLU of Nevada, credited Gillespie for being forthright about the obvious problems related to improper use of police tools and the original flawed internal affairs investigation, but suggested Gillespie may not have complete institutional control of his department.
“Here is the concern, and to his credit, Gillespie didn’t try to cover it up. He admitted it was a problem. But he did not, and maybe cannot, give assurances that there are the mechanisms in place to prevent this type of thing from happening in the future. That’s what was missing.”
Andrea Beckman, executive director of the Citizen Review Board, which monitors Metro, said, “I can understand the concern, and I would have that concern as a private citizen. But in my experience with Metro, running (background checks) outside your purview as an officer makes you subject to termination, and it should be because it’s a violation of public trust.”
This seemed to contradict Gillespie’s statement that improper use of police databases is sanctioned with a suspension.
Metro Sgt. John Loretto said the department wouldn’t comment on ongoing litigation or the discipline imposed on the 12 employees caught improperly obtaining and disseminating personal information.
Loretto said department policy dictates that the first offense would result in an eight- to 32-hour suspension; the second offense a 40-hour suspension; the third offense a 40-hour suspension or termination; and the fourth offense termination. The acts could be so egregious, however, that they could rise to a higher level of punishment on first or second offense, he said.
William Sousa, a UNLV criminologist and expert in policing, said there isn’t much data about the improper use of intelligence-gathering by police and said it’s difficult to say whether this constitutes a systemic problem within Metro.
In an e-mail, Sousa wrote, “Most investigations of police misconduct (via academic studies or official government commissions) indicate that misconduct is generally limited to minor acts by a few members of the organization acting individually or in small groups (e.g., the ‘rotten apples’ phenomenon).”
Sousa added that when problems are allowed to fester, they can spread.
“The hypothesis, however, is that if these ‘rotten apples’ are not dealt with, more ‘apples’ within the organization could become ‘spoiled’ (e.g., the ‘rotten barrels’ phenomenon).”
Sousa said there are common attributes of departments, such as the modern New York City Police Department — though not its historical ancestors — that are known for their integrity.
He pointed to “dedicated resources to professional standards and integrity units,” meaning strong internal affairs units. “It’s mostly anecdotal. But those that rate high in terms of degree of integrity have strong professional standards units but also their organizational culture has a low tolerance for unethical behavior,” he said.
Discussion: 36 comments so far…
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the punishment is not harsh enough; employed workers should be fined $25000 and retired employees pensions should be suspended for one year. management should put the hammer down.
What's (not) funny is that there was one allegation that one person at the Clark County Public Defenders Office misused the SCOPE protocol to look up an irrelevant party and Metro took away the ENTIRE OFFICE's access to SCOPE even though it is a key database for trial preparation and one available to the District Attorneys office. Private defense attorneys NEVER have direct access to SCOPE. So now that all these rotten apples have been misusing it....does that mean Metro can't use it anymore too?
More proof that corruption does indeed exist within the LVMPD, despite all the LAUGHABLE BS that we are constantly INSULTED with from the "police are heroes and can do no wrong" crowd. They'll try to justify this shameful incident as well, despite the fact that not everyone in this town is as stupid as they think they are. Excuse me while I go vomit.
another negative story involving metro...
the cops are out of control in this town...
metro is a joke...
period...
end of story...
at least they didn't kill anybody this time...
Gillespie is such a joke he needs to put on a clown face. Every day another negative story, he's either stalking hookers or getting his force out of trouble (that is, if they're not dead).
Birdie,
Holy Crapola...I actually agree with your post today. The keystone Kops stopped being funny when they started running into civilians while playing Speed Racer. Gillespie is a major embarrassment to Las Vegas and that's saying something.
Only 12? More like only 12 who were actually caught.
The out of control, lawless antics of Metro will not stop until the FBI comes in and turns the department upside down. Honest cops should be happy to see it happen.
if multiple people are not fired over this...
it is time for the legislature to take charge...
it is time for structural changes...
we are sick and tired of the excuses...
we are sick and tired of the tortured rationalizations...
we are sick and tired of the cops killing people...
enough is enough...
hey labdaddy...
want to grab some lunch today???
hee hee hee!!!
Birdie,
Why? Is Palin having a book signing you want to go to????
12 people out of thousands of officers and thousands of entries everyday! That sounds like far below the average of any compnay or bussiness. I think that is pretty low. There are more bad priests then cops! Sounds and looks like the typical "cop haters" posting again. Considering its Vegas and I guess we will never know but I'd love to see the criminal and financial records of "haters". That would be an entertaining laugh.
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK METRO! THANKS FOR DOING A TOUGH JOB AND PROTECTING THE PUBLIC THE BEST THAT YOUR ABLE.
This shows what a corrupt goon squad Metro is. Find dirt on political enemies.
It also lends credence to the Massio suit against Gibbons and Young.
I have an idea, let's just take away metros guns and then insist that they go around giving everyone a hug. Call it a phenomemnon if you want but every work place has bad apples. People always want to believe that is wide spread corruption within LVMPD but there is not. Just because a few speed and are involved in accidents does not mean that they all speed and cause accidents.
The ACLU has always lobbied for less police powers and that is exactly what they are doing now. There is a reason why police officers call the average citizen sheep, because they go about their life thinking nothing bad will ever happen to them. I have news for you people, there are very bad people here in vegas who will shoot and kill you and then eat a sandwitch like nothing happened. there are a lot more monsers like the ones that killed officer Nettleton. LVMPD always has one ear to the ground when it comes to corruption, they took a long look at Rampart in LA and learned valuable lessons.
I've said this a thousand times but I'll say it again, cops can be a-holes! They know it and you know it, there are some that need to learn that you catch more flys with honey...now that I've said that, let me say this....METRO IS THE THIN LINE THAT STANDS BETWEEN US AND THE MONSTERS WAITING TO KILL YOU AND EAT A SANDWITCH. If you donot believe me, then do a ride a long and you will see.
dirty cops
I'm sorry, but a criminal history should be available to everyone. There is nothing improper about finding out whether or not you live next to criminals.
And speaking from experience, this is not a 1 in 500 problem. This is more like a 1 in 25 problem. And it happens nationwide. It happened in PA where I worked and it happened in TX where I worked. It's too easy to do and you really can't stop anyone from doing it unless you are standing over their shoulder.
Doc Holliday, criminal histories are available through public record. This was much more - social security numbers, birthdays, Metro ID numbers, FBI numbers (in some cases.)
Vegas Fan, according to Metro's internal affairs investigation the investigator in the Public Defender's office (who has been terminated) ran 64 of the 66 SCOPES on behalf of Guinn's investigator. One was unrelated to the Quinns as it was a background check Jeff Guinn wanted on his son's roommate. Metro ran 2 SCOPES and 247 DMV checks for Guinn's investigator.
shouldnt that detective have been terminated after the fact if he did indeed do something wrong.it seems to fly in the face of the criminal investigation and lawsuit that he was allowed to retire with his full benefits and not have to answer for his wrong doings.
Perhaps Metro should consider running regular background checks on their own employees. I considered renting a house to a Metro employee until I obtained their credit report - numerous evictions, late payments, etc, etc. What a mess.
These officers are a blight on the LVPD. There are police officers and their supervisors who are dedicated to the life of smoothing out the rough bumps that occur when lives are disrupted by chaos and school boy tactics. These officers must be a spin off of the rat trap snatchers and their relatives. It is the same principle as confiscating rat traps out of a persons yard just because the police chief's brother and family like to play in landfill items.
The MOB museum is looking better and better these days !!
This department is imploding on itself !! all the corruption at the top is finally coming out in the wash !, the sad part about it is all of Las Vegas citizens are paying for this in the form of being victims of crimes. The Metro Police department is so immersed in their own corruption and having to do a "double take" just to cover up their own crimes, they are letting these thugs run wild through our city killing us and their own. What we see out on the streets from Cops and Robbers is a reflection of whats going on at the top. No different than a big corporation trying to cover its own ass. I use to think highly of Metro and now my confidence and support of this department is quickly deteriorating. Thank You LAS VEGAS SUN for reporting this story and other like the NINA RADETICH story to air out our cities dirty laundry. This is only going to make our city better !!! Again I say (as in other stories I have commented on) LETS GET THESE DIRT BAGS OUT OF OFFICE AND REMEMBER THIS ON VOTING DAY !!!
AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT
AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT AUDIT
Oh, did I mention AUDIT...?
Metro, committed to crime-n-corruption under the guise of law enforcement.
"Mankind is more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, then to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed." -- Thomas Jefferson
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Oh Cambridge get a life !!!
One is one too many....period!! If you knew how strict the Federal Gov't was on their employees it would make your hand spin....all to assure YOUR information is kept private. This is no different...and the outcome should be the same...STRICT.If they had a privacy officer in place within their ranks...the first access would have been caught within moments,addressed and resolved. And I mean moments.
"I'm not suggesting there are bad intentions on the part of Metro's leadership, but 12 breaches of that policy are definitely problematic," said Gary Peck, former head of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada.
Either the reporter got Peck's quote wrong or Peck doesn't grasp the issue. This isn't about 12 improper accesses to the system since 2005. This is about 12 people making (possibly THOUSANDS of) improper accesses to the system since 2005.
What internal controls do they have in place? Is a valid case number required to be attached to the request? Are audits conducted to verify that the case numbers, the issues in the case, and the persons being investigated all match or bear relevance to each other?
Babyboomer, it's much easier than you would lead people to believe... even under the watchful eye of the Feds. I've witnessed it hundreds of times.
Like I've said before, Metro is a runaway dept. Leadership needs to be changed. Everyone complains but they don't do anything about it. Vote Gillespie out, root out the officers who flaunt their status and are vindictive. Where is DOJ in all of this? As an employee of any law enforcement dept in the country, you have to sign your life away to qualify to access doj records and the paperwork says, if you violate the policy by running celebs or friends, you will be criminally charged by DOJ. What happened to that??
The corruption does stop with Metro, it's the people that are employed within these so call government entities. For example, Clark County Business License Department corruption connected with the D.A. And Connected to The City Of Las Vegas Councilman Barlows office-Nepotism, hostile work environments, discrimination, racism, unlawful employment practices, defamation, slandering, threats with the use of government land lines, abuse of positions, personal agendas, personal gain, broken privacy laws and the laundry just gets bigger and bigger.
Barlow is the biggest caucasion hating individual in local government. He really does have an agenda that few have seen, or refuse to see. Someone needs to check this guy out.
Why do people fear government power and control of information. It's easy , government employees. There human and subject to being as bad as anyone except they have control and a badge.
Look what happened to SOCAL PI Anthony Pellacano who snooped on people using police sources and illegal wiretaps. He got 15 years in federal prison.
Massio said Bill Young of Metro, tipped off GOV Gibbons about the allegations...The attorney now has an easier row to hoe when stuff like this comes out.
Maybe they could develop some audit reports to help them identify unusual patterns of access to the database. Same with UMC.
UNAUTHORIZED INFORMATION; SCOPE?
In 1996, Sheriff KELLER let LVMPD Lt. Commander Tom Smitley publish false entries into his computer, that was not entered by NCIC, to mark me as an Ex-Felon, after I completed 4-years probation as a convicted "Gross Misdemeanor" person!
KELLER let falsified info stay, & SMITTLEY did in fact DESTROY all my business & property, to sell my land to their boss [Don Laughlin],within the BLM "Land Auction" they all created.
In short, Kenny Guinn knew LVMPD could alter criminal records for anybody, by any LVMPD officer acting under color of State law and the[ir] public office.
Such is status quo for the named parties!
we need federal government come and clean house
These people need to all go to prison.
If this was a criminal they would be charged with absolutley everything and anything the police and D.A.'s office could throw at them. Why are cops aloud to do such things?? As for the Guinn family...... I know a person who was in the Women's prison here in Las Vegas, an older lady and she was harrassed by her case worker. She had alot of money put on her inmate account the C.W. would put a hold on it saying it was drug money, She wanted to self-parole out and the C.W. never applied for her, The C.W. also opened her legal mail and never delivering it. She tried to sabotage her parole board by not submitting the Parole plan. The Metro Liasion Carracapa for the prison looked into this and found out some dirt. That the caseworker (who is now just a corrections officer because of this) was on Kenny Guinn's payroll and to make my friends life a living hell cause of some illegal doings the then Govenor was involved in with my friend. Once the information was out in the open former Gov. Guinn left my friend alone and gave the Case worker some additional paymeny due to her being demoted. The Guinn's are some shady ass people and they use to governor us, WTF??