Click here to subscribe today or Login.
WILKES-BARRE — While not yet formally released to the public, extracts of a report on the toxic state of labor relations in the city’s police department quickly found their way into the hands of reporters last week.
The external report by the Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association makes for some grim reading, saying that the relationship between Chief Marcella Lendacky, Patrol Commander Ron Foy and most members of the police union “is irreparably damaged.”
Despite several news stories since the Times Leader first published details from an unedited partial copy Thursday, each story and each new reading of the document seems to bring forth new details about the dire state of affairs.
What none of the stories have had, so far, is an official response from the city — which is still reviewing the report — or Lendacky, who did not return a call seeking comment Friday.
The Wilkes-Barre Police Benevolent Association, the union that represents rank-and-file officers, issued a statement indicating agreement with an “overwhelming majority” of its findings.
What stands out very clearly is that the examiners found much fault in Lendacky and Foy.
“By a clear preponderance, information gleaned through interviews and surveys depicts an organization impaired by a variety of management missteps,” the report’s executive summary states.
To ensure the department progresses beyond its current status, the report offered 30 recommendations in the areas of leadership, discipline, chain of command, and administrative investigations.
Any such changes will almost certainly have to be carried out by someone other than Lendacky, who informed Mayor Tony George last week of her intent to retire effective June 3.
Below are some of the more noteworthy of the report’s findings.
Lack of direction
“A largely dysfunctional directives system, coupled with mismanagement of the administrative processes for maintaining accountability and discipline have created a stagnated organization, mired in controversy,” the report says.
It says management lacks skills related to budgeting, procurement, contract management, labor relations and strategic planning.
“Mismanagement has created an environment where a lack of direction, uncertain expectations, inconsistent and harsh discipline and generally flawed administrative processes have fostered contention and distrust” between management and the PBA, the report adds.
Lendacky does not consistently follow the department’s own procedures, the report says, and criticizes her and Foy for failing to use an organized system for issuing and modifying written directives.
“The muddled nature of the directives is illustrated perfectly by Commander Foy’s comment to assessors that he has three sets” of standard operating procedures, it states.
“The consequences of these failures are central to an ongoing conflict relating to expectations, accountability and discipline,” the report adds.
Lack of education
One of the issues, the report points out, is that neither Lendacky nor Foy has attended professional education and training for the positions they hold, “and accordingly do not meet professional criteria commonly required for consideration by hiring authorities for police executives.”
Prior to their current roles, the report notes, Lendacky was a night shift watch commander and Foy was a detective.
She did receive basic police training before joining the department in 1989, and attended one first-line supervisor training class after becoming a lieutenant in 2010, but has not attended any law enforcement executive leadership training nor any training by accredited national organizations, telling the examiners that in Wilkes-Barre training is learned on the job.
”The effect of this absence of executive/leadership training is illustrated in virtually every aspect of the Lendacky administration,” the report adds.
Discipline, grievances
The harshness of discipline under Lendacky and Foy is a theme running clearly throughout the report.
The reviewers noted the filing of 44 grievances and unfair labor practice complaints in the two years since Lendacky was appointed chief, and that 15 of 18 disciplinary actions over that time were against PBA executive board members.
Foy’s process for dealing with alleged misconduct and complaints also came under the microscope. It described a process in which “he makes determinations of culpability, and then makes recommendations for discipline,” but does not interview subjects. Rather, “he emails them and directs them to respond to an allegation.”
That process is not consistent with the department’s own policy for internal investigations, nor with best practices for police departments, the report says.
“The friction between leadership and rank and file seems to be escalating with the discipline, suspensions and terminations looming over members who are at odds” with Foy and Lendacky, it adds.
Problem with Myers?
Bad blood between management and PBA President Sgt. Phillip Myers is another clear theme.
The report says Lendacky contends problems with the PBA occurred because Myers “was angered that he was not appointed as chief.
“There was no indication of this assertion found by the assessors,” the report replies.
The examiners also honed in on remarks Foy made to City Council on Dec. 22, 2016, when he publicly criticized Myers as “dishonest, deceptive, cowardly, untrustworthy, and just plain wrong.”
As well, Foy said Myers was motivated to oppose Lendacky because “she is a she,” the report says.
The report criticizes Foy for demonstrating “sarcasm and intolerance,” and for his open criticism of Myers.
“This style of public character assassination could not be further from what is considered appropriate by modern management practices,” it states.
Foy was not alone in alleging gender bias against Lendacky as the source of friction.
“Chief Lendacky has indicated the problems are limited to about seven officers,” the report states, citing a 2017 Times Leader story. “She stated there was resistance to her leadership because she is a woman, and that officers who were not carrying their weight were dissatisfied because she was holding them accountable.”
Modifying reports
The report also addressed PBA allegations that Lendacky modified reports to lessen severity of incidents to cast a better light on the administration and the mayor. The examiners said review of documents appeared to verify the allegations.
In one case, the union said Lendacky changed reported burglaries of copper pipes from vacant residential buildings to thefts.
“During an interview with assessors, Chief Lendacky asserted the incidents occurred in a vacant lot and incidents of this kind were thefts, not burglary, by definition,” the report states, making it clear the examiners saw it differently, referring to her “misrepresentation of incidents occurring in the city.”
Commander Coffay
There is one member of department leadership portrayed favorably in the report: Investigations Commander Joseph Coffay, a 28-year-veteran of the department who has served in his current role for four years.
The report notes Coffay has earned two relevant college degrees and has 12 years of inter-agency coordination experience while assigned by the department to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
“His background and experience align with qualifying standards for consideration as a senior administrator,” the report states.
In the report, Coffay is quoted as telling examiners he has never seen morale as low as it is now, adding that Lendacky routinely goes to investigators with instructions or questions, without his knowledge, making it difficult for him to oversee the investigators under his command.
Lendacky told the examiners Coffay “tries to be the nice guy,” but does not follow up with directives to staff.
The report portrayed him differently.
“Many interviews and survey results describe Commander Coffay as a supportive leader who provides guidance and instructions without belittling,” the report states. “He is said to provide clarity of expectations and to be responsive to requests for assistance.”