Circleville Police Department to undergo review amid turnover

CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) -- During Tuesday night’s Circleville City Council meeting, council members passed an ordinance to hire a former law enforcement official to come in and conduct an outside review of the police department.

A new public safety director was also just sworn in on Monday.

“We’ve been in the news a lot, a lot of negativity," said Barry Keller, president of Circleville City Council. "We want to turn that around and do what’s right for the employees of the police department as well as what’s best for the citizens of Circleville."

These steps are coming after the Circleville Police Department has seen a number of resignations and officials placed on leave over the past few months.

Former Circleville police chief Shawn Baer was put on leave in March. Just weeks later his replacement, acting police chief Doug Davis, was also placed on leave. Both chiefs were accused of misconduct and harassment and they voluntarily resigned in April.

Then, just last week, acting deputy chief Jon Farrelly was placed on administrative leave for allegedly trying to solicit sex from a citizen while he was in uniform.

Circleville Mayor Michelle Blanton said this is why a review of the department and a new public safety director was needed now.

"Do we have some areas that we have to work on? Absolutely," Blanton said. "But those men and women come to work everyday and put their lives on the line and go into some pretty stressful situations."

The outside consultant will do a top to bottom evaluation of the department and report his findings to the council after 45 days.

Rob Ware, the new safety director, said the consultant will most likely share positive and negative things about Circleville police.

“My goal is that by the time he finishes his report, we’re already making progress in a lot of the areas he has identified,” Ware said.

Blanton and Ware said they recognize that some citizens may have lost trust in the Circleville police, but they want people to know that officers in town can still be relied on and will continue to work hard for the city.

"The things that they face everyday are intense, they require a lot of dedication, and we're glad to have them here," Blanton said. "I hope the citizens of Circleville through this process can have the same confidence in them like we have."

“I tell them when you are the best version of yourself, the organization benefits," Ware said. "When the organization benefits, the city benefits."

City officials said because the ordinance passed on Tuesday, the consultant will most likely begin his review of the police department sometime next week.