Courtesy Photo © Melinda Carney at her graduation. With her are Safety Manager Tracy Howard, left; her husband, Sgt. Cliff Carney, right; and Denver Police Chief Gerry Whitman, far right.

City's efforts to hire more minorities not 'lip service,' cop says

By Hector Gutierrez, Rocky Mountain News
August 1, 2003

Melinda Carney isn't the only one who has questioned Denver police hiring practices.

There was an uproar in 1999 - a year after Carney's second rejection from the academy - when it came to light that Ellis "Max" Johnson was hired after he admitted in his application that he was once a drug addict.

Then-Mayor Wellington Webb appointed a blue-ribbon panel to make changes in how the Civil Service Commission, the manager of safety and police department can better screen and hire recruits.

Carney and her attorney, Gregory A. Eurich, said recently that they felt that Carney's federal discrimination case against the city appeared to show that former Manager of Safety Butch Montoya approved black police applicants with less favorable backgrounds, like Johnson, while disqualifying those with more impressive credentials.

Montoya did not return calls seeking comment.

Earl E. Peterson, the Civil Service Commission's current executive director, said changes have been made to the process:

• Peterson and his staff conduct a preliminary review of all files to immediately disqualify unsatisfactory applicants .

• Background checks are conducted by the commission's investigators rather than police detectives.

• The use of hair-follicle drug testing has been implemented.

• A lengthy behavioral questionaire has been added to the application.

"There's a lot more due diligence now than in the past, and I don't mean that in a bad way," Peterson said. "I like to be involved in the files and make sure we're involved in the process."

Police Chief Gerry Whitman said he is unable to talk about Carney's case because it is a personnel issue.

Steven Cooper, police division chief of technology and support services, said the police department has been attempting to use its "lateral program" as a minority recruiting tool to bring more black, Hispanic and Asian officers to Denver. Under the program, recruiters target experienced officers in other departments around the country and try to hire them away.

The academies for officers interested in becoming Denver cops are shorter and the transplants don't have to compete with entry-level recruits.

"It's a matter of interest to me because there's great competition in police departments to attract minorities," Cooper said. "Attracting Asians and attracting African-Americans is always a challenge for us. It's an ongoing battle."

Sgt. Ron Thomas, president of the Black Police Officers Organization, said his group has discussions with the mayor, police chief, safety manager and the Civil Service Commission to encourage the recruitment of qualified candidates and "make sure we hire qualified candidates.

"I don't believe it's lip service," -Thomas said of what he feels is positive feedback from city officials.

"All the people we talk to seemed encouraged to do so."

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