News conference held on DHSPD Chief investigation
A news conference was held at 4:30 Tuesday on an investigation into ‘confidential allegations’ against the Desert Hot Springs Police Chief.
Chief Dale Mondary was placed on paid administrative leave Monday according to Doria Wilms, Public Information Officer and Assistant to the City Manager for Desert Hot Springs.
The news conference was held by Wilms at the new Desert Hot Springs city hall, located at the intersection of Palm Drive and Pearson Boulevard.
Wilms detailed that the law firm Stream Kim Hicks Wrage and Alfaro would be handling the investigation.
Monday’s announcement about Mondary being placed on leave came hours after News Channel 3 started asking questions relating to sexually suggestive communications on social media, allegedly made by Chief Mondary.
Deputy Chief Jim Henson will serve as the Interim Chief of Police while the investigation is conducted.
Mondary became the Chief of DHSPD in June 2015
“That’s what these investigations allow us to do, is to look at situations as they come through,” Wilms told News Channel 3. “He’s on paid administrative leave. That doesn’t say one way or another what the outcome of the investigation is at this point. We’re just looking at the allegations determining what is true what is false.”
There currently is no timeline for the investigation.
News Channel 3 reached out to Chief Mondary on Monday in regard to the allegations and he provided no comment. On Tuesday, he could not be reached for comment.
Wilms says city employees and officers go through in depth, sexual misconduct and ethics training when hired.
“All of our employees, but specifically our public safety employees, have a tremendous amount of training they must go through,” said Wilms.
We combed through the DHSPD Policy Manuel regarding use of Personal Communication Devices while on duty. Policy prohibits members from accessing social networking sites for any purpose that is not official department business. It also prohibits personnel from using personal devices to harass, threaten, coerce or engage in inappropriate conduct with a third party.
In mondary’s employment agreement, signed in June of 2016, it reads, “an employee may be put on administrative leave at any time for any reason during the term agreement at the direction of the city manager”.
According to Wilms, the city manager is the liason between Mondary and the police department while Mondary is on leave.
People in the community are expressing mixed emotions.
“It is disappointing, it really is, because the city is putting their trust in you and you’re doing this,” said Larry Clark of Desert Hot Springs.
Meanwhile, some people believe it’s the Chief’s personal matters that should be private. “I don’t think it should be anyone’s business.”
The Desert Hot Springs Police Chief is not the only officer in his department under investigation involved in these specific allegations.
Back in December of last year, News Channel 3 learned that an officer was on leave for what the city called “inappropriate conduct with a citizen.”
That officer, who we have chosen not to name, continues to be on leave pending the outcome of that investigation.
According to a city spokesperson — Chief Mondary was not overseeing that probe.
Read the messages below:
A source close to the woman in one of the text message threads says the woman asked the person believed to be Mondary to stop messaging her and when he didn’t, she felt she had no choice but to publicly expose the conversations.
