Bainbridge Conversation

The public can meet the five finalists for the Bainbridge police chief position Thursday evening. A meet-and-greet with the quintet is scheduled for 6-8 p.m. at City Hall.

The candidates will visit with personnel at the police department this afternoon before the public reception. Tomorrow they will meet with four interview panels and City Manager Doug Schulze. Schulze said he could announce his pick for the job as early as Friday evening.

Here are the mini-bios provided by the city:

Police Chief Finalist Brief Bios

Bainbridge Police Chief Position Profile by

Have a decade of law enforcement experience and a bachelor’s degree? The City of Bainbridge Island may have a job for you.

The city is advertising nationwide for a new police chief, with the help of executive search firm Strategic Government Resources.  The job description, posted Monday, asks for applicants with 10 years of “progressively responsible” law enforcement experience, and five years in a senior command position. A bachelor’s degree is required but a master’s degree in administration or criminal justice is preferred. The new chief is required to live on Bainbridge.

SGR consultants were on the island earlier this month to gather input from residents and talk to city officials. They created a glossy brochure for the position, as they did for the city manager search last summer.

As with new City Manager Doug Schulze, the incoming police chief will fill a position with a turbulent history.

Recent controversies at the police department are hinted at in the position profile. Under the header of “Issues and Challenges,” the profile lists trust building between police and community as a top priority. The new chief will need to improve accountability within the department and promote public outreach, especially with schools, the profile says.

The ideal candidate, according to the profile, will need to “facilitate change, while respecting the island’s culture and responding to the needs of the community.”

The deadline for applicants is Feb. 22.

Three women were arrested in Port Orchard on Sept. 3 after stuffing their purses with $615 worth of rum at a Bainbridge grocery store. The same women were suspected of stealing liquor from several stores in the same chain Aug. 30.

The blotter is below:

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Here’s a batch of Milt Priggee’s comic takes on the Bainbridge city manager search, plastic bag ban, Winslow Way-Highway 305 park project and the reputation of Bainbridge police.

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CASE BACKGROUND: The plaintiff Ostling family is expected to wrap up its case this week. They’re suing the city of Bainbridge Island for alleged civil rights violations against Douglas Ostling, the night the 43-year-old was shot and killed by police.

Reporter Tristan Baurick is at court live blogging the proceedings today.

CASE BACKGROUND: The plaintiff Ostling family is expected to wrap up its case this week. They’re suing the city of Bainbridge Island for alleged civil rights violations against Douglas Ostling, the night the 43-year-old was shot and killed by police.

Reporter Tristan Baurick is at court live blogging the proceedings today.

Recent dust-ups over the Bainbridge city manager and the police department has inspired a burst of island-related cartoons from editorial toonsmith Milt Priggee.

We couldn’t run them all in the paper but Milt has posted them on his blog, which you can find here.

Head below to see more of Milt’s recent Bainbridge-skewering work. Be warned – two of the cartoons involve beheadings.

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Fired Civil Service Examiner Kim Hendrickson has shifted her efforts for greater police accountability to the blogosphere.

Her new blog, Keep BIPD, Hendrickson lays out her arguments for greater police-hiring oversight, why the police department should remain under local control, and why she filed ethics complaints against two city Civil Service Commission members.

For those just tuning in to the Civil Service Commission controversy, head over here for the firing, here for the fallout and commission member resignations, and here for Hendrickson’s ethics complaints against two commission members.

The City Council will again take up the issue at their Wednesday evening meeting.

Liveaboard plan saved again
Just when about half of Eagle Harbor’s liveaboards were about to give up on the city’s open water marina plan, a few last minute changes on vessel boarding and sewage disposal rules appear to have shifted sentiment back in favor of the plan. Read more here.

Business groups merge
Fewer dollars and staff have brought the Bainbridge chamber of commerce and downtown association together as one organization. Get the details here.

Inslee speaks
U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee is set to speak in his own neighborhood tonight. He’ll be the guest at a Bainbridge Rotary dinner at the Wing Point Golf & Country Club. More info here.

City statement on Ostling shooting
If you haven’t seen it yet, head over here for the city’s statement on the police shooting of Douglas Ostling. The city offers condolences to the Ostling family, mentions the city is undertaking an internal review of the shooting, and refers readers to the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office investigation and the county prosecutor’s letter responding to the Ostling family’s outrage over the shooting. The prosecutor’s letter follows the city letter.

Five minutes to shoot, 77 minutes to allow medical aid
Head over here for my latest story on the Ostling shooting investigation. An analysis of the lengthy 911 dispatch log and other documents allowed us to piece together a timeline of events leading up to the shooting and the drawn-out aftermath. Police opened fire on Ostling five minutes after arriving at the scene, but it took 77 minutes to check on Ostling’s condition.

I called Bainbridge several times on Friday and Monday for an explanation about why it took so long. On Monday afternoon I was told by e-mail that police would not respond to the question.

For other recent stories stemming from documents we obtained from Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office investigators, head over here and here.

Police body cams
The Kitsap Sun’s editorial board weighed in on the issue in Sunday’s paper. The board notes that Bainbridge police and the Ostling family have given very different accounts of the Oct. 26 shooting, especially on some key issues, such as where officers and Ostling were positioned, and whether or not the ax-wielding Ostling had an officer in a vulnerable position when the second officer fired his gun.

The editorial board argues that video cameras mounted to police officers would have made the key details of the incident much more clear to investigators, and the judge and jury that are likely to weigh in in the not-too-distant future.

Here’s a bit from the editorial:

“A car-mounted digital video cam costs about $5,000 — versus about $900 for a body-mounted camera, which also can be removed and mounted on the dashboard. Worn on an officer’s chest or with an ear clip similar to a Blue Tooth, the body cams offer a close-up video and audio recording that provides an accurate and unbiased view of disputed incidents.”

To read the rest, head over here.

The Bainbridge Island Police Department is hosting the island’s “National Night Out” festivities this evening from 6 to 9 p.m. at the green outside City Hall.

The event is one of many similar events held around the country to foster positive interaction with local police.

Here’s what’s on the schedule:

· Free hot dogs, ice cream and cookies.

· Music by the Hometown Band

· Meet local police, fire, K9, marine and bomb squad officers.

· Activities with West Sound Wildlife Shelter, IslandWood, Kids Discovery Museum and other organizations.

· Drawings for movie tickets, pies, bath supplies, clothes and gift cards for hardware supplies and groceries.

Attendees are asked to bring a can of food for Helpline House.

A former Bainbridge police officer is suing the city over how the Bainbridge Island Police Department handled a domestic dispute at his home and the subsequent investigation into his and his wife’s actions.

The officer, who resigned in 2008, is asking for $1 million in damages. His wife is also suing for unlawful arrest and other claims. One of their sons recently filed a third claim against the city alleging that police used excessive force when arresting him during a 2007 traffic stop.

Read the full story here.