'I did nothing wrong!' OPD chief Armstrong demands to be reinstated
OAKLAND -- Oakland police chief LeRonne Armstrong, who was placed on administrative leave by Oakland mayor Sheng Thao last month, demanded to be reinstated to active duty at a Sunday news conference.
"I believe I should be reinstated because I did nothing wrong," Armstrong said.
He plans to send an official letter to the mayor and city administrator asking to return to work. The chief was accused of failing to properly discipline a sergeant in connection with a hit-and-run crash.
Mayor Thao put Armstrong on paid leave based on the summary of a report. The chief said he finally received the full, nearly-sixty-page report on Wednesday. At the news conference, Armstrong stated that his review of the report confirms that the investigators' and federal monitor's conclusion about him is unsubstantiated and inaccurate.
"My review (of the report) confirms that the investigators and the federal monitor conclusion about me is not supported by evidence. Frankly, the confidential report -- information provided by the (federal monitor Robert Warshaw) is embarrassing. It's inaccurate. It contradicts itself about the role that I played in this case and the report focuses and targets me," Armstrong said.
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Armstrong also claimed that department policies prohibited his involvement in the internal affairs investigation.
"The report relies heavily on vague and subjective information without evidence," he said. "I do think the chief is responsible for holding people accountable when that information is brought to him. And, in this case, that information was not brought to me. So I was not able to take the proper action."
Armstrong's supporters have blamed the situation on federal monitor Robert Warshaw, claiming that he wanted to extend federal oversight and keep collecting his paychecks.
The police department has been under federal oversight for two decades and that oversight was supposed to end in May. Warshaw and his team earn roughly $1 million per year.
Cynthia Adams, president of the Oakland branch of the NAACP, sent a letter Monday to Thao urging her to meet with her group to discuss Armstrong's immediate reinstatement.
"Our coalition is united on our mission to ensure Oakland's Chief is immediately reinstated and remains deeply concerned by his sudden placement on administrative leave," said Adams in the letter. "As I shared during yesterday's press conference, it's like when a teacher goes on leave. The students get a sub and start acting up. Oakland is acting up. We urge you to listen to the voters of Oakland, the communities of Oakland. Reinstate our Chief."
Thao said last month that putting the chief on leave was not meant to be punitive.
But Chief Armstrong said he's not going down without a fight.
"I believe Oakland is a city built on fighting for social justice. This is an injustice. This is not fair," he said.