Ex-SPD officer linked to racist, homophobic comments created 'hostile work environment'

Springfield NAACP President Teresa Haley said as disgusted as she was with a Springfield Police officer who quit after being linked to racist, antisemitic and homophobic posts on social media, she is hopeful the community can help find "real solutions" to mitigate the damage.

It all starts with a unity forum at Southeast High School, 2350 E. Ash St., at 6 p.m. Wednesday. It will be held in the Commons Area.

Springfield Police Chief Ken Scarlette will attend the forum, along with Sangamon County state's attorney Dan Wright.

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Both have been vocal about the decertification of Aaron Paul Nichols, an 18-year veteran with the SPD who resigned on April 5 after being put on administrative leave April 1.

"People who have reached out to us want to listen in and be part of it," Haley said over the weekend. "By giving this some time, it allowed us an opportunity to reflect on it. Hopefully, people will come with tangible solutions we can make happen."

Representatives from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of Illinois and the Illinois Attorney General's office are also expected at the forum, Haley said.

Scarlette said he had a meeting Monday with an investigator from the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board (ILETSB). Scarlette didn't divulge what was talked about, citing the ongoing investigation.

It was Scarlette, who became police chief in February, who initiated the decertification paperwork.

The police department has an internal investigation ongoing while Wright's office started an internal review of matters in which Nichols was involved.

Last week, Wright also wrote a letter to ILETSB in support of Scarlette's call for decertification, pointing out that Nichols' resignation was "woefully insufficient."

"No community should be subjected to an encounter with Nichols as a member of law enforcement at any time in the future," Wright stated. "Decertification is necessary to ensure this cannot occur."

Haley, who is also president of the Illinois chapter of the NAACP, said the SPD officers she has talked to said Nichols created "a hostile work environment" before he was exposed.

"If you're making people feel uncomfortable on their job and they don't feel like they can't do their job without someone discriminating against them because of their race, then there is a concern," Haley said. "Black officers didn't feel like there was anyone they could talk to address these issues."

Scarlette said the incident has fractured relationships "internally and externally."

"It goes without saying that we have police officers who represent different minorities, officers of different religions and those who identify with the LGBTQ community who took the postings personally," Scarlette said. "That in and of itself make relationships difficult."

Scarlette said the incident was the act of "a rogue individual and doesn't reflect on the men and women of the department who are doing a dangerous and difficult job and putting their lives on the line every single day."

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Nichols' behavior, Haley added, made "a mockery" out of the Ten Shared Principles, which were agreed to by the NAACP and the SPD and reaffirmed at a city council meeting less than a year ago.

The shared principles, which include valuing life, treating people with dignity and respect, rejecting discrimination and supporting diversity in police departments, are designed to promote trust between communities and police officers.

The initiative started after unrest erupted in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014. The Illinois NAACP State Conference and the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police signed the affirmation in 2018.

Former SPD Chief Kenny Winslow, who retired earlier this year, led the effort to get all 26 law enforcement agencies in Sangamon County to adopt the principles.

"The Ten Shared Principles is a living, working document," Haley said. "The unity meeting summit on Wednesday will take us deeper in depth in renewing these principles."

Haley said she was hopeful, though, "a commission or committee" could automatically be convened along with a town hall meeting, if future cases arise.

"We're going to continue to be pro-active rather reactive and we're going to work together because I personally believe this is one Illinois, one Springfield," she said. "No matter where you live in this community, you need to be able to trust your police officers and I believe (Nichols) has damaged that trust and he has helped with the stereotypes and the myths that we've been trying to get rid of or tear down.

"All it takes is one. I believe if there's one, there are probably others. He's the one who got caught."

Haley acknowledged Scarlette and the police union for taking quick action early in the incident. She said conversations with the state's attorney's office and others have put them "on the same page."

"We say no, not in our town. We say no, not anywhere in Illinois do we want this behavior to occur and when it does occur, we have to come up with a more unified way of resolving this issue or resolving this conflict," Haley said.

As for Wednesday, Haley hoped participants in the forum come armed with ideas to mitigate the problems.

"I tell people all the time if you constantly come to me with a complaint and no solutions, then we're not getting anywhere," Haley said. "I usually put complaints back into the complainer's lap and say come to me with possible solutions.

"We're hoping Wednesday that people come with possible solutions, real solutions."

Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788, sspearie@sj-r.com, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Forum convened by the NAACP aims at solutions after cop resignation