Sex In a Patrol Car Is A-OK: The Mayor and Council's Coverup

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February 9, 2024

Mayor R. Romero, Council Members L. Santa Cruz, P. Cunningham, K. Dahl, N. Lee, R. Fimbres, S. Kozachik, and City Manager M. Ortega, 

I write to you all about a problem that I am having with a department within the City of Tucson. The issue I am dealing with involves Sergeant James Scott with the Tucson Police Department who was caught by a citizen “messing around while on duty.” The ensuing investigation showed that Sergeant Scott and his “date,” an off duty Tucson PD dispatcher, engaged in sexual activities that included “hugging, kissing, buttocks grabbing, and genital groping.” These “dates” occurred multiple times over a period of 4-5 months. What’s worse, these encounters occurred while Sergeant Scott was on-duty, he was in uniform (with his bright yellow sergeant stripes on his sleeve designating him as a leader), the happy couple was in or around a marked Tucson PD patrol car, and they were in an area that was open and accessible to the public (mostly Reid Park). 

Now, before I go on, I can save everyone some time here. If you can show me where I can find the change in policy that allows police supervisors in your police department to commit multiple sex acts, over a period of 4-5 months, lie about it, and then get a slap on the wrist followed by a promotion to a position where they supervise a detective squad, please provide that information and I’ll take it from there. However, if you believe that your police personnel should actually be enforcing the law, or supervising and supporting those who do, while they are being paid by your constituents, then you may want to look at the information I have included. I would also like you to consider that fact that after I reported specific details about the sex acts and the cover up that followed, an investigation was initiated against me. I’ll say that again, after I brought this corruption to light, an investigation was initiated against me. This is unacceptable. 

I learned about the actions of Sergeant Scott while reading the 1,024 page investigation conducted by the Tucson PD Office of Professional Standards (OPS #18-0476). That’s right, the sexual deviancy described above that was committed by Sergeant Scott, was defended by the Tucson PD Executive Leadership Team as well as the Office of Professional Standards. It should also be noted that the Tucson Police Department has arrested citizens at that location for doing less than what your sergeant and his date were doing (See Tucson PD case number 1510220401).

As the Tucson PD personnel in charge of this investigation were clearly comprised, I decided to submit this information to Arizona POST (Peace Officer Standards & Training Board). AZ POST sets the standard for law enforcement professionals in the state of Arizona. 

According to their website, “The Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board stands to foster public trust and confidence by establishing and maintaining standards of integrity, competence, and professionalism for Arizona peace officers and correctional officers.”

On January 24, 2024, I received a public record request that stated AZ POST has suspended the certification for 28 police officers for sexual misconduct, they have revoked the certifications for 27 police officers, and they have denied the certifications for 7 potential police officers for sexual misconduct. I wonder why they chose to close this investigation “without initiating proceedings” and then initiate an investigation against me. Whatever the reason, I think we can all agree that this is one heck of a story.

I have included the following documentation for your review.

1. The original complaint that was buried on page 627 of the 1,024 page investigation. There is no record of this individual being interviewed at any time during this investigation.

2. A 13-page personnel report authored by Lieutenant James Brady and a second 5-page personnel report authored by Captain Matt Ronstadt, Sergeant Scott’s divisional chain of command (it should be noted that Lt. Brady is one of the few people who actually investigated this matter and Captain Ronstadt is the one person who considered the facts of the case when recommending the appropriate punishment for Sergeant Scott based on his actions. Lieutenant Brady is also the one person involved in this investigation who has not been swiftly promoted through the ranks and Captain Ronstadt has retired from the Tucson Police Department).

3. A 7-day intent to discipline for the demotion of Sergeant Scott to the rank of officer (dated November 21, 2018). This was signed by Sergeant Scott as well as Captain M Ronstadt. This punishment was signed off on by Assistant Chief Kevin Hall and Chief of Police Chris Magnus.

4. A 7-day intent to discipline for Sergeant Scott (but not for demotion), this time it’s for a 40-hour suspension (dated December 3, 2018). Please note that this drastically reduced punishment is based on a meeting with an unknown person that occurred on the date of “xxxx.” Again, this was signed off on by Chief Chris Magnus. Just so we’re clear, Chief Magnus reduced the punishment of Sergeant Scott after he wrote the following in regards to Sergeant Scott’s actions in this investigation:

“My expectations for department supervisors have been clearly communicated from the moment I was named Chief of this agency. Among them was the mandate that every supervisor exemplify integrity by demonstrating and modeling honest and ethical behavior with others; that every supervisor demand others demonstrate high ethical standards; that every supervisor demand others demonstrate an awareness that they carry the public’s trust, and must not abuse this trust on or off duty; and that every supervisor take care to evaluate situations using good judgment in order make the best decision, and deliver the best service possible. Sergeant Scott failed in every aspect of this mandate.”

Unlike using public safety pension funds to invest in the stock market, there is nothing complicated about my complaint regarding this corruption and the covered up that followed. In fact, some cops would refer to this investigation as a “ground ball.” One year after a sustained complaint for failure to supervise in August 2017 (reference a child abuse investigation), Sergeant Scott chose to have sexual contact while on-duty, in uniform, in a marked patrol car, and in an area that is open and accessible to the public. Sergeant Scott was investigated again for failing to supervise in February 2020. The results of that investigation are not known to me.

The mayor and counsel have received a sizeable financial raise from Tucson taxpayers. How will it look for the City of Tucson to be negligently retaining a police supervisor who committed so many sex crimes while on-duty? Especially when you consider the Tucson Police Department has arrested citizens for doing less on one occasion, at the same location. 

The choice is obvious. I hope you do the right thing.

I thank you all for your time and consideration.

James Voss

This one was kinda funny.  I brought the envelopes to City Hall and was prepared to provide a copy to the mayor and the city manager.  I delivered the city manager's envelope first.  I was then going to provide the mayor with her copy.  When all of a sudden, a woman grabbed both envelopes and advised me that I was submitting them in the wrong place.  I asked her if she would initial the mayor's envelope to show she received it and she said "NO!"  She clearly had no regards for my feelings!

As you can see, this was received by the City Manager's Office February 9th at 1000 hours.  This is within a minute or two of when Regina Romero's copy was received.

Mayor Regina Romero can be reached at 

 mayor.romero@tucsonaz.gov 

City Manager Mike Ortega never acknowledged receipt of this envelope.  He just quit.

Text to follow...

Kevin Dahl can be reached at 

ward3@tucsonaz.gov

Text to follow...

Paul Cunningham can be reached at 

ward2@tucsonaz.gov

Representatives from Tucson's Ward 3 and 4 responded to our e-mail.  

As you can see, Ward 3's Shannon Jenkins stated she would advise Vice Mayor Kevin Dahl of this incident.  

Ward 4's Cindy Lopez acknowledged receipt of my complaint and advised she would forward it to Mitchell Kagen, the Independent Police Auditor for the Tucson Police Department.  

Spoiler Alert: Independent Police Auditor Mitchell Kagen has already reviewed AND APPROVED of this miscarriage of justice.

It's pretty clear that the elected officials from the City of Tucson do not care about this corruption.

ward3 

From:ward3@tucsonaz.gov

To:j voss

Cc:Katie Bolger

Tue, Feb 13 at 9:16 AM

Hello Mr. Voss, 
I'll share your email with Vice Mayor Kevin Dahl. 
Best, Shannon Jenkins
She/Her

Ward 3 Office Administrator

Vice Mayor Kevin Dahl

1510 E. Grant Road

Tucson, AZ  85719

520-791-4711

Ward4

From:ward4@tucsonaz.gov

To:j voss

Tue, Feb 13 at 10:43 AM

Hello Mr. Voss,

Thank you for contacting the Ward 4 Council Office. Our office did receive the complaint your dropped off and we have forwarded it to the Independent Police Auditor and Civilian Investigator for review. His name is Mitchell Kagen and here is the link to his site https://www.tucsonaz.gov/Government/Office-of-the-City-Manager/Independent-Police-Auditor-Civilian-Investigator. You can also reach via email at Mitchell.kagen@tucsonaz.gov.

Kind regards,

Cindy Lopez

City of Tucson

Ward 4 Council Office

8123 E. Poinciana Rd.
Tucson, AZ 85730
520-791-3199

 MayorRomero

 From:mayor.romero@tucsonaz.gov

To:j voss

Fri, Feb 16 at 1:57 PM

Hello!

Thank you so much for taking the time to email the Mayor’s office.  As you might imagine, we receive several emails a day and try our best to respond to in a timely manner. Know that your email is important to us and that we appreciate your patience.   

We’ve included some information below on frequently asked topics. 

Mayor and Council  

• Agenda Information: https://tucsonaz.onbaseonline.com/1801AgendaOnline 
• Watch Live: https://www.youtube.com/user/CityofTucson 
• Contact the Audience/Clerks Office: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/gov/local-government-participation
  

Ward Contact Information  

• Ward 1: ward1@tucsonaz.gov 
• Ward 2: ward2@tucsonaz.gov 
• Ward 3: ward3@tucsonaz.gov 
• Ward 4: ward4@tucsonaz.gov 
• Ward 5: ward5@tucsonaz.gov 
• Ward 6: ward6@tucsonaz.gov
  

Housing and Community Development 

• General Questions: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/housing-and-community-development 

Environmental and General Services Department  

• Residential Services: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/es/residential-services-overview
  

Planning and Development Services Department 

• Frequently asked questions: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/pdsd/frequently-asked-questions-0
  

Parks and Recreation  

• Information on Parks: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/parks
  

Office of the Independent Police Auditor 

• https://www.tucsonaz.gov/manager/independent-police-auditor-civilian-investigator 
• Need to file a complaint ?: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/oeop/independent-police-auditor-civilian-investigator-complaint-form                                   

Ward6 

From:ward6@tucsonaz.gov

To:j voss

Fri, Feb 16 at 1:57 PM

Thank you for emailing the Ward 6 Council Office of Council Member Steve Kozachik.  Your email will be forwarded to an appropriate staff member. 
Regards,  

NOBODY!  ABSOLUTELY NOBODY!  We didn't even get the BS automated responses that we were receiving.  It is entirely possible that the City of Tucson Mayor, City Manager, and EVERY MEMBER of the City Council has blocked a registered voter, a tax payer, and a CITIZEN of TUCSON!!!

We will leave you with this...

Mayor Regina Romero, the City Manager Tim Thomure, and EVERY MEMBER of the Tucson CITY COUNCIL, APPROVES of Tucson Police Supervisors having sexual contact while ON-DUTY, while IN UNIFORM, while in a MARKED PATROL CAR, and in an area that is open and accessible to the public.  These "leaders" also APPROVE of Tucson Police Personnel LYING about their involvement in a series of ON-DUTY SEX CRIMES.

WE ARE NOWHERE CLOSE TO BEING DONE HERE!