Durango CO. March 24 2008
At least three Durango Police Department officers have lost their jobs after posting personal photos on MySpace, a popular Web site for social networking.
The officers - Cari Green, 24, Amber Ortiz, 28, and Tony Romero - were given the option to resign or face termination, and on Feb. 13 and 14 all three opted to resign, Green and Ortiz said in an interview last week.
Green, who had worked for the police department for less than a year, posted many photos, including one in which she was trying on her new police uniform. There was no nudity whatsoever, she said, and before posting the picture, she altered it to look like a black-and-white sketch. There was no way to identify which agency she was involved with.
"I had just gotten my uniform," she said. "I was not even in training yet, and I was trying them on to see how they fit. My friend was taking pictures of me to send to my family. I turned around and tipped my hat at her, and they (department officials) said that was inappropriate."
Ortiz, who also worked for the police department for less than a year, posted standard photographs of herself in police uniform as well as a photograph of her at a Halloween party.
Green and Ortiz agreed to be interviewed on the condition that it was clear that the Herald approached them about doing this story. The Herald received several phone calls about the resignations. Romero declined to comment for this article, but Green and Ortiz said all three were treated unfairly. Their MySpace pages were an expression of their private lives, and the pages did not interfere with their police duties, they said.
The Durango Police Department has struggled with a high turnover rate, and the loss of three officers doesn't help.
Capt. Micki Browning, spokeswoman for the department, declined to comment on the specifics of the investigation because it is a personnel issue. In an e-mail to the Herald, however, she said there are some guiding principles by which all police officers must abide: "Individual reputations may be affected by the actions of the member standing next to us," she wrote.
All three officers were in their first year at the police department, and were probationary employees. As such, the police department has more leeway when it comes to disciplinary actions.
The department's code of ethics, provided by Browning, says, "I will keep my private life unsullied as an example to all." Durango's police are also expected to uphold department values, including, "We recognize that our personal conduct, both on and off duty, is inseparable from the professional reputation of the police department and the city of Durango."
Green said of the many photos on her site, at least two caught the attention of her superiors. In addition to the one tipping her hat, Green took a self-photograph, in uniform, in the locker room at the police station, 990 East Second Ave. Browning, who investigated the incident, called the photo "provocative," Green said.
Ortiz, in the Halloween picture, is dressed as Daisy Duke with a long-sleeve shirt and short shorts. She is holding a beer and mugging for the camera.
The former officers declined to have the photographs published with this story. Green said the photos of her tipping a hat for the camera seemed appropriate at the time, but people misinterpreted it as being seductive, so now she doesn't want it published.
"When I took it, that was the furthest thing from my mind," she said. "And when I sent it to my family, they didn't consider it seductive. But I guess that's what they (department officials) construed it as."
The officers forced to resign considered the MySpace pages to be private expressions of themselves and a way to communicate with family and friends. They never considered that members of the public - including defense lawyers - would bother to view the Web pages, let alone take offense to the content.
"I never thought of that," Ortiz said. "I never thought anybody was going to see my MySpace page, because who would care?"
And the women never meant to portray the police department in a negative light.
"I thought I was going to retire there," Ortiz said. "I loved working there so much."
Said Green: "I loved the department. I was their biggest cheerleader. I never had anything bad to say."
The MySpace Web site does not allow its users to post illegal activities, offensive material or nudity.
Green and Ortiz are uncertain how commanding officers became aware of their MySpace pages, but about a week before Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, the three officers were summoned individually into Capt. Browning's office. And for the next week, they were interrogated on several occasions by Browning.
In the end, Browning was unwilling to give the officers a second chance. They weren't given the opportunity to remove the Web pages and be written up for committing a "rookie mistake," Green and Ortiz said.
"I would have canceled my account right there and then if she (Browning) told me it hurts the department," Ortiz said.
They said there is no department policy when it comes to maintaining a MySpace page, and it is something that several officers did, including supervisors.
As many as 10 officers were involved in what Green and Ortiz called the "MySpace investigations."
They are uncertain as to why they were given the option to resign or face termination.
Green and Ortiz have applied for other law-enforcement jobs in the area, but so far they have been unsuccessful.
Both are fairly fresh out of the police academy and are committed to pursuing law-enforcement careers. They consider themselves good cops who weren't given a chance to fix one mistake - a mistake that didn't cause any harm.
"Because nobody can understand why we (were let go), we can't get jobs," Green said.
Usually, police officers are let go only if they make a bad mistake on the job or if they commit some major conduct violation, like breaking the law. Good cops aren't forced to resign, Green said, and she considers herself a good cop.
To prove they are good cops, Green and Ortiz shared with the Herald their disciplinary records, which are fairly minimal for rookie cops, they said.
Green has two on-duty accidents: one involves hitting a deer, and the other occurred when she was backing up and hit a fence. She has been written up twice: once for not securing her locker, and the other for failing to clean her shotgun.
Ortiz has had two on-duty accidents: one involved hitting a large piece of trash in the road, and the other occurred when she backed into a car, causing paint transfer. She has been written up three times: once for failing to secure her gun in a locker, a second for failing to clean her gun and a third for leaving a police hat on top of a locker instead of putting it inside the locker.
Browning has acknowledged that high turnover has a significant financial toll on the police department. Each new officer takes considerable time and money to train.
That's part of the reason Green and Ortiz can't understand why Browning let them go so easily.
"Was whatever I did so terrible as to warrant letting a good cop go?" Green asked. "Because I think I was a good cop."
Ortiz said officers are held to a higher standard than most people, and she accepts that. "But we're still human."
At least three Durango Police Department officers have lost their jobs after posting personal photos on MySpace, a popular Web site for social networking.
The officers - Cari Green, 24, Amber Ortiz, 28, and Tony Romero - were given the option to resign or face termination, and on Feb. 13 and 14 all three opted to resign, Green and Ortiz said in an interview last week.
Green, who had worked for the police department for less than a year, posted many photos, including one in which she was trying on her new police uniform. There was no nudity whatsoever, she said, and before posting the picture, she altered it to look like a black-and-white sketch. There was no way to identify which agency she was involved with.
"I had just gotten my uniform," she said. "I was not even in training yet, and I was trying them on to see how they fit. My friend was taking pictures of me to send to my family. I turned around and tipped my hat at her, and they (department officials) said that was inappropriate."
Ortiz, who also worked for the police department for less than a year, posted standard photographs of herself in police uniform as well as a photograph of her at a Halloween party.
Green and Ortiz agreed to be interviewed on the condition that it was clear that the Herald approached them about doing this story. The Herald received several phone calls about the resignations. Romero declined to comment for this article, but Green and Ortiz said all three were treated unfairly. Their MySpace pages were an expression of their private lives, and the pages did not interfere with their police duties, they said.
The Durango Police Department has struggled with a high turnover rate, and the loss of three officers doesn't help.
Capt. Micki Browning, spokeswoman for the department, declined to comment on the specifics of the investigation because it is a personnel issue. In an e-mail to the Herald, however, she said there are some guiding principles by which all police officers must abide: "Individual reputations may be affected by the actions of the member standing next to us," she wrote.
All three officers were in their first year at the police department, and were probationary employees. As such, the police department has more leeway when it comes to disciplinary actions.
The department's code of ethics, provided by Browning, says, "I will keep my private life unsullied as an example to all." Durango's police are also expected to uphold department values, including, "We recognize that our personal conduct, both on and off duty, is inseparable from the professional reputation of the police department and the city of Durango."
Green said of the many photos on her site, at least two caught the attention of her superiors. In addition to the one tipping her hat, Green took a self-photograph, in uniform, in the locker room at the police station, 990 East Second Ave. Browning, who investigated the incident, called the photo "provocative," Green said.
Ortiz, in the Halloween picture, is dressed as Daisy Duke with a long-sleeve shirt and short shorts. She is holding a beer and mugging for the camera.
The former officers declined to have the photographs published with this story. Green said the photos of her tipping a hat for the camera seemed appropriate at the time, but people misinterpreted it as being seductive, so now she doesn't want it published.
"When I took it, that was the furthest thing from my mind," she said. "And when I sent it to my family, they didn't consider it seductive. But I guess that's what they (department officials) construed it as."
The officers forced to resign considered the MySpace pages to be private expressions of themselves and a way to communicate with family and friends. They never considered that members of the public - including defense lawyers - would bother to view the Web pages, let alone take offense to the content.
"I never thought of that," Ortiz said. "I never thought anybody was going to see my MySpace page, because who would care?"
And the women never meant to portray the police department in a negative light.
"I thought I was going to retire there," Ortiz said. "I loved working there so much."
Said Green: "I loved the department. I was their biggest cheerleader. I never had anything bad to say."
The MySpace Web site does not allow its users to post illegal activities, offensive material or nudity.
Green and Ortiz are uncertain how commanding officers became aware of their MySpace pages, but about a week before Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, the three officers were summoned individually into Capt. Browning's office. And for the next week, they were interrogated on several occasions by Browning.
In the end, Browning was unwilling to give the officers a second chance. They weren't given the opportunity to remove the Web pages and be written up for committing a "rookie mistake," Green and Ortiz said.
"I would have canceled my account right there and then if she (Browning) told me it hurts the department," Ortiz said.
They said there is no department policy when it comes to maintaining a MySpace page, and it is something that several officers did, including supervisors.
As many as 10 officers were involved in what Green and Ortiz called the "MySpace investigations."
They are uncertain as to why they were given the option to resign or face termination.
Green and Ortiz have applied for other law-enforcement jobs in the area, but so far they have been unsuccessful.
Both are fairly fresh out of the police academy and are committed to pursuing law-enforcement careers. They consider themselves good cops who weren't given a chance to fix one mistake - a mistake that didn't cause any harm.
"Because nobody can understand why we (were let go), we can't get jobs," Green said.
Usually, police officers are let go only if they make a bad mistake on the job or if they commit some major conduct violation, like breaking the law. Good cops aren't forced to resign, Green said, and she considers herself a good cop.
To prove they are good cops, Green and Ortiz shared with the Herald their disciplinary records, which are fairly minimal for rookie cops, they said.
Green has two on-duty accidents: one involves hitting a deer, and the other occurred when she was backing up and hit a fence. She has been written up twice: once for not securing her locker, and the other for failing to clean her shotgun.
Ortiz has had two on-duty accidents: one involved hitting a large piece of trash in the road, and the other occurred when she backed into a car, causing paint transfer. She has been written up three times: once for failing to secure her gun in a locker, a second for failing to clean her gun and a third for leaving a police hat on top of a locker instead of putting it inside the locker.
Browning has acknowledged that high turnover has a significant financial toll on the police department. Each new officer takes considerable time and money to train.
That's part of the reason Green and Ortiz can't understand why Browning let them go so easily.
"Was whatever I did so terrible as to warrant letting a good cop go?" Green asked. "Because I think I was a good cop."
Ortiz said officers are held to a higher standard than most people, and she accepts that. "But we're still human."
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Visit Us: www.myspace.com/privateofficernews-Be Part Of This Exciting Community!
JOIN OUR NEW SOCIAL NETWORK…….www.privateofficer.com
On Sale NOW!
PROTECT YOURSELF!-Tasers, Pepper Spray, Stun Guns
www.privateofficer.com
SECURITY BADGES, ID CARDS, EQUIPMENT---www.privateofficer.com
GET PAID TO SHOP!~ MAKE MONEY FROM HOME!~~~REALLY! CHECK IT OUT!
FREE TO SIGN UP AND FREE TO USE!
http://www.mypowermall.com/Biz/Home/108089
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