Union Assails Petition
Police want judge to throw out cruiser election requestBy CASEY JUNKINS Staff Writer
Article Photos
WHEELING - Members of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 38 want Ohio County Circuit Judge Arthur Recht to declare the petition for an election on the two-officer per cruiser mandate invalid.
Wheeling attorney Joseph John filed a response on behalf of the officers, which claims City Clerk Janice Jones and City Council should not have accepted the signatures because petition circulators George Jones and William Hefner did not follow procedures as required in the City Charter.
John's filing asserts that "certain signatures are improper and have been improperly inserted into the petition without the person's consent; the circulator, on some signature pages, did not witness the signature in his/her presence as required; certain signatures inserted on the signature pages are not those of the actual people identified and said signatures were forged thereon."
George Jones, however, disputes these claims of forgery and wrongdoing.
"These accusations are obviously untrue. We did our best to follow what is laid out in the City Charter," he said.
After Janice Jones certified the 2,469 signatures to council on July 21, members of council voted unanimously during an Aug. 18 meeting to accept the petition. Humway-Warmuth then promptly filed suit against George Jones in an effort to hold the election in May, rather than within 90 days as the City Charter seems to mandate.
But George Jones and fellow petitioner William Hefner are not contesting the suit, as they have agreed to hold the election in May.
City leaders have said the reason for seeking the delay is to save Wheeling taxpayers the nearly $100,000 it would cost to hold a special election to comply with the 90-day requirement.
Humway-Warmuth's filing asks Recht to enter a "declaratory judgment action" to establish the rights, duties and obligations of all parties involved.
But during a Sept. 1 hearing, Recht noted that because there was no controversy between the city and the petitioners, there was nothing for him to decide.
"It basically is a request for an advisory opinion, which the law in West Virginia is clear that it cannot give," Recht said of Humway-Warmuth's filing. The judge noted he may be able to make a ruling after a date for an election is set because the date for the election could cause "controversy."
Recht then told FOP President Thomas Howard the organization had until Sept. 30 to file a response to the case involving Wheeling and George Jones. So John has now filed to intervene in the case because "the FOP's interest is not adequately represented by the existing parties."
"The referendum petition, including the attached signatures, does not comply with all requirements of the City Code and should not have been certified and should not have been forwarded to City Council pursuant to Section 81," John's filing states.
The filing also claims that "council is mandated by Section 17 to call a special election within 90 days of July 21, 2009, as no general election is scheduled to be held within those 90 days."
The matter is now set for a hearing at 2:45 p.m. Sept. 25 in Recht's courtroom on the on the fifth floor of the City-County Building, 1500 Chapline St., Wheeling.
Humway-Warmuth said she "anticipated they (FOP) would have a filing."
"We will let this situation work itself out in the court system," she said.
John did not return calls seeking additional comment Monday.
If the court ultimately allows the election, Wheeling voters will get to decide if the 1972 ordinance requiring two city police officers to ride in all frontline patrol cars should remain on the books. If residents would repeal the law, newly hired Police Chief Robert Matheny would be able to assign officers the way he sees fit, as opposed to being forced to comply with the ordinance.
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GETACLUE
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09-16-09 1:13 PM
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wv26003.... I Better Leave it alone..... you do the Math. nuff said
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GETACLUE
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09-16-09 10:28 AM
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I don't know the extent of investigating that is going on I was asked not to say anything and I probably shouldn't have. I did let emotions get the better of me when I first posted, as it has really ticked me off. The person responsible for signing my signature did the same for about 20 more on the same page. All of the printed names were in the same penmanship, as well as all of the dates, the actual signatures differed very slightly on a few of the signed names. None the less in due time it will come out.
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GETACLUE
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09-16-09 10:16 AM
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Should read There not their
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GETACLUE
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09-16-09 10:09 AM
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Their is a statement at the bottom of the petition that states that all of the above signatures were signed in the circulators presence. I was called by a member of the FOP and asked if I had in fact signed. I said no and asked to see the petition. It was brought to me and it is CLEARLY NOT my signature. I made a written statement and request that it be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. I know of at least 7 other like written statements. Like it or not this is the TRUTH. My true desire behind this is that MY SIGNATURE WAS FORGED TO A LEGAL DOCUMENT. I HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT. Wouldn't you????
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MeanStreak
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09-16-09 9:07 AM
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don't you think that it will be hard to prove??? Who is to say YOU are not the deciever in this. Maybe you planned this all along. How would you know that your name was on it if you did not set this up? I am just being the devil's advocate. Why fight it though? What is your true desire behind it?
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GETACLUE
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09-16-09 8:54 AM
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wv26003.... I can't say who it was due to pending legal issues. Suffice it to say it is a name that everyone would recognize. I am sure that he reads these blogs. The charges may include forgery uttering and election fraud.
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MeanStreak
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09-15-09 11:05 PM
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hey Pickles I know of several times when 1 sheriff's deputy was the only one int he county
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pickles
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09-15-09 10:54 PM
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So if you are in e wheeling, you're back-up could be coming from 48th st, the island, or warwood-assuming they are not on a call, report, or arrest. That's several minutes to wait for back-up. In a bad situation, someone will get hurt(officer, suspect, or victim). Most officers would be willing to work one man cruisers, some would even prefer that situation. But no one wants to be at risk the way things currently are structured, and that is placing an aweful lot of trust into the administrators-some who will never go on a call again. Some guys and girls, are not too keen to be in that situation.
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pickles
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09-15-09 10:47 PM
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I don't think that anyone is suggesting that there are times and areas that one man cruisers could be utilized. I don't think this is just about protecting jobs either. There are many wpd on the cusp of retirement, so if they wanted to cut the department-they could do so by not replacing the people leaving. For those idiots that think the fop is a union and just trying to protect revenue, retired and layed-off members can still be members and pay dues. What this is primarily about, imo, is that with a history of mistrust of city administrators, would you trust the city? The officers often have to cover the city with 6 officers, 8 on midnight. Pittsburgh pd may have one man cars, but there is one or more cruiser every few blocks. No one knows how the new chief will respond, but with the way things are currently structured, 6 officers will be way too spread out to be effective back-up. 1 downtown, 1 island, 1 s wheeling, 1 east of washington ave, 1 west, 1 warwood.
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Sayitaintso
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09-15-09 9:47 PM
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No offense to you "say it ain't so" we know you came from this Ohio/Wheeling Valley what ever the*****it is; but these ingrates that post in this rag are all a bunch of whoopies; liberals/conservatives/whoopies; they crack us up. What a bunch of dopes! We hope we didn't offend you sias but it's just a huge waste of sperm! Signed: Marcos from the AM Group
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TriadWhgx2
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09-15-09 9:40 PM
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Waited until the end of this story to find out what the law actually is. zzz
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GETACLUE
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09-15-09 9:34 PM
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wv26003...George Jones was not the person responsible for the forgeries either.
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wvhoopie
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09-15-09 9:29 PM
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I agree with blueline.
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Blueline
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09-15-09 8:46 PM
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Perhaps people can tell me why they oppose democracy so much? This ordinance was passed by the people of Wheeling, and has been challenged by ballots twice since, and upheld by the citizens of Wheeling each time. People have the right to challenge it again, but lawfully. Not through forgery or deceit. If there is so much support for this to go to ballot again, then I'm sure such tactics would not be needed. Perhaps the majority of citizens already believe that their police force works well the way it is. Maybe that's why it took 2 years for this petition to be "completed". I'm sure that Judge Recht will determine this matter fairly.
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EllisWyatt
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09-15-09 6:59 PM
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Can anyone name one other village, town, borough, city, township, county or state that has a two-man cruiser law? The FOP is trying to protect jobs. This has nothing to do with public safety. It has to do with job preservation. Why are Wheeling PD always crying about their pay when they do half the work that other cops do? Shouldn't they be paid half of what other cops earn? How can you split the duties of one cop into two and then demand equal pay? Pittsburgh cops work one man to a cruiser. State police work one man to a cruiser. Ohio County deputies work one man to a cruiser. Will anyone on this board seriously suggest that the city of Pittsburgh is less dangerous than the mean streets of Wheeling?
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Melvin
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09-15-09 5:57 PM
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Grammy: You are correct. In YOUR words, "in SOME cases two men per cruiser". YES!!!! In some cases. Not all.
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Melvin
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09-15-09 5:55 PM
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Hey grammy: Let's take your "logic" a step further and let everyone decide how many people should do their job. By the way, is there any other city in the US that has this law? Why do you think they don't? A gunshot in East Wheeling resulted in multiple cars responding. A domestic situation in StoneGate resulted in multiple cars. We just don't need a buddy in the car in the daylight in Elm Grove.
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wvgrammy
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09-15-09 5:19 PM
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I think that the FOP has a right to protest the petition. Who better to know whether they need two men per cruiser then the men who put their lives on the block every time they answer a domestic call. You never know if there is a gun involved or if you will be ganged up on. I think we need to realize that in some cases two men per cruiser is not just for our safety but for the policemen's safety as well.
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Melvin
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09-15-09 5:05 PM
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Hey guys and gals - anyone find the name of any other cities / towns / boros / municipalities / states / townships / counties / etc...? If not, then I guess the only crackpots in the US are those in Wheeling that fought to get this law. Hey, if you don't have a valid argument, then attack the character of the other person...grade school debating 101...
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GETACLUE
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09-15-09 3:38 PM
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I never said it was Bill Hefner. In fact right now I can tell you that it was not Bill Hefner.
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Wheeling999
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09-15-09 2:06 PM
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Bill Hefner or Bill Clinton, the city needed this petition. If it fails, we'll try again next year.
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richardwhee
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09-15-09 12:55 PM
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Typical Union-- CRY-CRY-CRY. After all the wrangling, let the people vote. There has to be at least some interest or it wouldn't have gotten this far.
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Wheeling999
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09-15-09 8:57 AM
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Melvin: I think you've asked that question every time haha! I stand with you. I'd love to hear some valid arguments. I do, however, believe that no other "law" exists in the United States. However, I am not a judge, nor lawyer, nor an expert. Good luck, Wheeling.
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MeanStreak
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09-15-09 8:19 AM
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I did not get a chance to sign the first petition but if this one is considered null and void, tell me were to go to sign it. I will be first in line. It should not be up to the citizens how to run the department, that is why they have a Chief!!!! Has to make me wonder why so many people are opposed to having chief run his own department. IMO there is no need for 2 man cruisers in Wheeling (Safest City in the US lol) but that is not MY decision to make.
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GETACLUE
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09-15-09 7:31 AM
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Melvin the report has already been done as well as 7 others. It will invalidate the entire petition as there will be a significant portion that was gathered by the forger. All of his pages will come under question and will be nullified. Thus the required number of signatures will not have been obtained and the petition will be null and void.
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