CHARLESTON - Earlier this month two of his deputies were absolved of wrongdoing after fatally shooting an armed man, but in the aftermath of a federal trial, Raleigh County Sheriff Steve Tanner is looking at two non-existent policies presented as fact in the case. One is a drug and alcohol testing policy, which merely consisted of federal guidelines if one were ever implemented, Tanner said. A second element that surfaced in the trial involved a purported policy in which any deputy discharging a firearm or involved in an accident causing serious injury or death must be investigated by a special board of inquiry consisting of the sheriff, chief deputy, and an outside officer with the rank of sergeant or above, or the State Police. I've never seen that in my life before, Tanner said Wednesday. I don't know where that came from. Actually, he said, the department's policy states that a three-member review panel will look into any shooting incident. On that board, the sheriff assigns one member, the Deputy Sheriff's Association picks one, and the two agree on a third member, Tanner said. Cpl. Gregory Kade and former Deputy John Hajash were exonerated in a wrongful death suit brought by Mary Webb, widow of Robert Webb, who was shot in the driveway of his Cabell Heights home in the wee hours of July 4, 2006, while wielding a semi-automatic rifle;. I'm very happy that the deputies and sheriff's office were completely justified and vindicated, Tanner said. But I think somewhere throughout this, we've kind of forgotten how much the Webb family has suffered. I'm really hoping, five years later now, this might help them to recover from their tragic loss. I hope this will help them in their healing process. Tanner said the trial failed to expose any flaws in his department's training and procedures. It does remind me clearly that we need to discipline ourselves to keep our policies, our procedures cleaned up and updated, he said. Mindful of that, Tanner said a former law enforcement officer, now a practicing attorney, is looking at all of his department's policies at the sheriff's request and that he is getting input on this from both the Deputy Sheriff's Association and the Civil Service Board. .I'm not saying that has an extremely high priority, but it's something we will accomplish to avoid these very confusing situations in the future, the sheriff said. As for testing officers for drugs and alcohol, Tanner said no such policy ever existed in the first place and that the misconception came from a federal guideline issued in the 1990s and kept on file by former Sheriff Frank Lavender. That was just research material, which shouldn't have been put in, Tanner said. Very apparently, it was research material. It says it was research material when presented. Tanner said his department is forbidden from an after-the-fact test, applied, for instance, to an officer involved in a vehicle crash. If we say you wrecked a car and we smell alcohol and believe you've been drinking and have bloodshot eyes, now that's very reasonable then, but we're articulating our suspicion, he said. Absent that, one cannot simply administer a drug test, he said. Tanner said the jury's verdict, reached after a six-day trial in Beckley, showed his men acted responsibly in the Webb shooting. I don't think it requires any type of changes with regard to what we do, he said. We are obligated to always try to stay on the cutting edge of training, of equipment, and to reflect that with our policy and procedures. It's something we will endeavor to stay on top of. Above all, for now, he said, the focus should stay on the Webb family. We really do have a number of us who still have the Webb family in our prayers, he said. I really hope they're able to put this tragic incident behind them and move forward with their lives. I hope this gives them closure.
By Mannix Porterfield E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com
http://www.register-herald.com/todaysfrontpage/x2057656582/Raleigh-sheriff-s-policies-reviewed