Thursday, June 12, 2008

Share Your Story

Share your stories about Fred & Donnetta Walser!

17 comments:

Bondster1 said...

I am not good at blogging, but good a speaking my piece. I have known Donetta and Fred for 30 years and cannot say one unkind thing about either of them. They serve our communities with a commitment, that few can match. Who are we to condemn our public servents. Lay off the Walsers and do something that really counts, like voulnteer work at the Senior Center or clean up a park. This kind of slander is junking up our heads. If you want to pick on someone, pick on someone higher up the food chain. The Bondster1

Chris Nandor said...

bondster1:

Thank you for your comment. I do not know the Walsers. For all I know, they are perfectly fine people in most respects. I have no reason to think otherwise, and I was careful to limit my criticism only to specific issues and public activities, not to personalities. I have no wish to impugn anyone's character beyond what the public record shows.

What I do know from that record is that Fred Walser demonstrated a clear pattern of lying, violating direct orders, covering up, and even filing a false sexual harassment report to keep one of his subordinates -- who had a known history of harassing citizens -- from being properly fired.

She never should have been hired, and when she was found out, he never should have done any of those things to protect her.

I will not "lay off." Given his serious and willfull violation of the public trust, I do not want this man representing me -- I do not consider State Senator low on the food chain, but even if I did, I would oppose him in any representative capacity -- and when the facts are known, I am sure a majority of voters will agree.

And perhaps you do not think that keeping a man who is recently guilty of such willfull deception out of public office "something that really counts," but I do. This is my public service. Well, part of it.

You call it slander, but slander implies that it is incorrect. I laid out the facts, and if you would like to rebut any of them, feel free. Until then, it is simply false to refer to any of it as slander.

Sultanguy said...

Bondster,

If you know Fred and Donnetta Walser as well as you do, perhaps you should have encouraged them to remove themselves from the public eye after being so shamed.

It is one thing for an "Average Joe" to be found guilty of a crime. But it is another thing entirely when those who are sworn to uphold the law violate it.

A violation of the public trust by a Police Chief is perhaps the greatest violation because if we can't trust those commissioned to protect us then who can we trust? This makes Fred very high up the food chain.

I would feel the same way about a priest or a school teacher who abused children. People who are placed in positions of trust are held to a higher standard.

Fred and Donnetta should understand this and withdraw from the public eye as people used to do back when morality and ethics were important in a community.

The fact that Fred is defended by people like you is a tragic commentary on how far our culture has sunk.

Valentina, Heart of a Lion said...

COMMON SENSE! MORE THAN A CLERICAL ERROR!

Former Sultan Police Chief Fred Walser pleaded guilty today to providing false information to a public servant, a gross misdemeanor. (excerpt from Herald article)

A Whatcom County district court judge ordered Walser to do 240 hours of community service and pay the city of Sultan $20,000. Walser also will be on probation for a year and be required to check in with the court periodically, said Warren Page, the deputy prosecutor who handled the case in Whatcom County. (quote from Herald article)

He said he admitted to a clerical error which led to the charge. He should have produced a document when a public records request was filed when he was police chief in Sultan, Walser said. (quote from Herald article)

“I had a sheriff’s report in my file that I absolutely forgot about,” he said. “I accept responsibility for losing track of the report.” (quote from Herald article)
___________________________________
Common sense would dictate Mr. Walser would not have been charged criminally nor sentenced $20,000 restitution to be paid to the City of Sultan, assigned 240 hrs community service and a year of probation for a small clerical error or because he merely forgot. As well, it is very possible Walser's charges were reduced by the prosecutor in exchange for a plea deal. Voters need to check up on the Senate hopeful by reading the Everett PD Internal Affairs report and check out the 800 pages of supporting documentation which lay out the facts involved in the cover-up of the Clinko (Sheriff)report and misleading officials during an investigation. Then ask yourself why would the Chief of Police who was originally assigned as the appointed authority contact in the investigation forget a pertinent sought after report involving the investigation of his administrative assistant. The Everett PD Internal Affairs report includes an All Star cast (City Attorneys, Sheriff Bart, Mayor, Det. Swainson of WSP, Snopac personnel) of witness statements who tell quite a different version of events.

After reading the WSP and Everett PD investigative findings (neither mentions a clerical error) followed by Mr. Walser's guilty plea to providing false information to public officials, it is disconcerning to see his continued spin of events to media and the public.

That's a pretty expensive "clerical error" if you ask me!

Integrity is a life quality one should start and end with, including public servants!

Kudos to the creator of this website. Your analysis is right in line with the findings from the investigative reports! I would know, I'm the victim.

pepper said...

Fred Walser was responsible in large part for all former Sheriff Patrick Murphy went through. His paw prints were all over the setup that was done to Murphy. If anyone recalls, Walser was running against Murphy in the election for Sheriff around 1995.

Walser also was involved in a coverup in about 1993 where he falsified a police report in order to help Pat Slack's son. He was impeached in Court by another State Patrol Officer and was put on leave for over a week as a disciplinary action after lying and fudging on a police report.

Valentina, Heart of a Lion said...

Excerpt from a 2003 Seattle Times story:

State to investigate sexual harassment allegation against Sultan police chief
By Jennifer Sullivan

Times Snohomish County bureau

EVERETT — The state Attorney General’s Office has agreed to investigate allegations that Sultan Police Chief Fred Walser sexually harassed a former employee, the Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office said.
Walser, 62, was suspended Saturday with pay from the small east Snohomish County police department. It is not clear what allegedly happened, but officials say the incident happened when the alleged victim held a temporary position at the Sultan Police Department.
___________________________________

According to a document in the WSP Internal Affairs supporting documentation one of the investigators wrote: Sexual Harassment. Pepperell was Chief Walser's alibi. This is located in file #197 numbered: Swainson-#0200

I think the article above is the incident WSP was referring to. According to newspaper accounts, Chief Walser was not charged in this incident.

I believe Everett PD's report mentions the same two involved in the false sexual harassment claim against Pevey.

Chris Nandor said...

Wow. I was wondering why Walser went to such extraordinary lengths to protect Pepperell's job.

This could give us some answers. I'd like to see the documentation.

Valentina, Heart of a Lion said...

Let me know where to fax, email, or mail. I have a copy. You can contact me.

Chris Nandor said...

Please feel free to e-mail me at wagop -at- pudge.net. Thanks!

Chad Minnick said...

Fred and Donnetta Walser have similar problems when it comes to their management inadequacies.

Mayor of Monroe Donnetta Walser just drove the City of Monroe into a $1.2 million budget shortfall. I was on the City Council last year and predicted a tough economic year and called for no increase in the budget. I wasn't alone, there were other councilmembers who did the same. But Walser kicked and screamed and refused to budge until she had a majority who went along with her.

Earlier this month, she told the public there was a $400,000 shortfall this year. Then, last Saturday at an emergency budget meeting, the Council discovered on their own the amount was actually $1.2 million.

She tried to hide the true amount from the public to cover her massive mismanagement.

Refusing to release information to the public to cover her management failures...sound like a Walser pattern?

(read more on my blog here)

Valentina, Heart of a Lion said...

From the sounds of the news reports, it would seem the Walsers are serving their communities with a commitment to put their respective cities in the hole financially that few can match!

jimmyd said...

I could be wrong, but I thought that convicted felons are prohibited from holding public office.

Chris Nandor said...

I am not entirely sure if felons cannot serve, but he was convicted of a gross misdemeanor, not a felony, so it doesn't matter.

(Side note, usually, in most jurisdictions, a misdemeanor is a year or less jail sentence, and a felony is more than a year.)

pepper said...

Walser's past

I have the information and will type some of it in here.

It was a Notice of Disciplinary Charges and Request for Trial Board, Washington State Patrol, Olympia, WA. Case Number C-93-252.

He was charged with Unbecoming Conduct - violation of 7.00.030

Facts: These charges are based upon an incident that occurred during the period of May 18, 1993 through August 13, 1993. During that period you investigated an accident that involved Mr. Patrick Slack, Jr. That investigation was not requested by, nor in connection with your official duties with the Washington State Patrol. During your investigation of that accident you prepared a documetn that you titled "Collission re-construction and analysis." In that report, you concluded that the accident involving Mr. Slack, Jr. happened as stated in your document and that was the "only way the collision could have occurred." The conclusion expressed in your report was directly contradictory to the report filed by the investigation officer, Jeff Miner, Snohomish Police Department. Additionally, in your document you stated that you were a "trained accident reconstructionist with over 26 years experience with the State Patrol." You also listed several other qualifications, all of which were acquired through your employment with the department.

Detectives John Wright and Steve Davis from TID, Tacoma, reviewed the evidence involving the accident and concluded that the accident did not occur as you reported. Rather, the detectives concluded the accident occurred as Officer Miner's investigation had revealed. You were confronted with that information prior to the jury trial scheduled for August 13, 1993. Nevertheless, you elected to testify on behalf of the defense, Mr. Slack, Jr. While you did testify that your original conclusion was erroneous, you also testified as to a new theory concerning how the collision may have occurred. Detective Davis was subpoenaed to testify on behalf of the prosecution and ultimately testified that your original conclusion as well as the conclusion to which you did testify, were erroneous.

Your actions described above cost the department and the Snohomish Police Department several thousand dollars, lessened the public's confidence in the department's operation and training, and was motiviated by your friendship to Patrick Slack, Sr., the father of the suspect mentioned above. These facts demonstrate conduct which is unbecoming of a member of the Washington State Patrol. Based on this incident the Patrol is recommending a Five Day suspension without pay. Any further incidents of this nature will result in more serious displine up to termination. This was dated 11/23/1993.

If one were to get his personnel files, they will find that by 1994 Fred Walser was placed on probation with the Patrol. The monthly evaluations are quite revealing about his conduct, ethics and character.

There are 191 pages in his file and they are worth the read as upon reading it one will find that Walser's ethics have one changed one iota since he was suspended from the State Patrol. By way of background, Walser retired in the summer of 1995. It's all in his employee records and it is public information
Kristine Jones | Jul 3, 2008 6:43 am | 0 replies | View all | Post reply | Request removal

Burning of Stevens' signs
Whoever has done this is doing something terrible and hope it's not Fred Walser or his campaign staff.

One would hope that after accepting a guilty plea, that Walser will at last learn that honesty and integrity serve one much more than deception.

He had a history while at the Washington State Patrol where his integrity, loyalty, and judgment were frequently in question.

The incident in 1993 where he falsified an accident report involving Pat Slack's son should not go unnoticed. Voters need to be aware that Walser has developed a well-established pattern of using deception to get his own way. He also has been in trouble in the past for using a Washington State Patrol vehicle while on annual leave to attend a Mariner's game. Voters need to be aware that Walser had at least four discipilnary actions by the State Patrol while in their employ.

His evaluations by the Washington State Patrol should lead anyone with common sense to question whether we wish to have this man in office. His lack of emotional restraint and inability to handle stressful situations are well documented and we all need to pay attention to this as voters.

pepper said...

Chris, Doesn't it seem funny that a law breaker wishes to become a law maker?

The irony is sad.

Chris Nandor said...

Yes, it is quite sad, especially since it does appear he has not changed at all.

I would like a copy of the document that report came from, do you have it?

Valentina, Heart of a Lion said...

Was Fred Walser a bad judge of character or does he condone harassing behavior like is evidenced in his employee, Carole Pepperell (Feldmann)? That is the question!

See new court documents (excerpts)citing Carole Pepperell's harassment to her neighbor: www.sunbear-valentinaavengers.com

It didn't take the Snohomish County Hearing Examiner long to see it all after a day in court.