Antioch cashes out ex-chief: City to pay $190K over media leak

ANTIOCH In the latest police-related conflict to hit this beleaguered city bureaucrats here have agreed to pay to the former chief who filed a legal claim after details about a then-pending administrative inspection were leaked to the press In the end executives cleared ex-police Chief Steven Ford of charges he had an improper relationship with a city staffer according to documents the city issued Thursday A legal settlement signed Aug promised the city would pay Ford and at a minimum inform a specific newspaper reporter about the agreement The city s unfounded ruling means investigators disproved the statements In an interview Ford disclosed it was hurtful to be accused of something that I knew wasn t true but that he s happy with the outcome I m just grateful the truth came out Ford announced A report circulated by the city says that information about the inquiry was inappropriately revealed to the press before Ford even learned of it and that this resulted in damaging media coverage on or about the day this news organization published a story on the probe last December Under California law investigations regarding peace officers may only be revealed publicly when assertions are sustained In this matter the allegation against Chief Ford was uncovered not true the declaration says The city expresses its appreciation to Chief Ford for his previous utility as Antioch police chief It wishes Chief Ford the best for his future law enforcement career Ford a longtime veteran of the San Francisco Police Department before coming to Antioch didn t promptly return a request for comment Ford s indicates against the city centered on an administrative assessment that was opened in late nearly a-year-and-a-half after his departure It was an initiated by a civilian tipster who accused Ford of having an improper relationship with a staffer according to an email by City Manager Bessie M Scott informing Lamar Hernandez Thorpe Antioch s then-mayor about the study The email doesn t name the tipster but was sent roughly two-weeks after Ford s estranged wife emailed city representatives accusing Ford of dating someone who worked in Antioch during his tenure In Ford took over a department that appeared headed for stormy waters assuming control after the FBI and Contra Costa District Attorney conducted a series of raids targeting officers who were suspected of crimes Much of Ford s tenure was spent crafting reforms attending public events and promising to win back community trust He abruptly resigned in July but tried and failed to get his job back in which later became a piece of his legal claim The claim accused the city of defamation invasion of privacy inflicting emotional distress and a failure to re-hire in retaliation when Ford sought the chief s job in He filed the claim last April after executives released they d selected Joseph Vigil a veteran Antioch officer who d served as acting chief for the job On Feb Vigil sent Ford a letter stating a third-party examination had cleared him Ford never stated his reason for leaving the department His divorce proceedings began around the time of his resignation After leaving Antioch he tried and failed to obtain chief jobs in Oakland and at Cal State East Bay In August a federal grand jury and Contra Costa prosecutors charged a total of ex-Antioch and Pittsburg police officers with various crimes including three ex-Antioch officers charged with violent civil rights abuses One was later convicted at trial a second pleaded guilty to become a leadership s witness and the third is set to go before a jury next month By then details of another related embarrassment had already been made citizens involving Antioch officers who shared racist sexist and homophobic communications in text groups These included slurs and disparaging comments about Ford who is Black as well as local politicians and other officers In a letter announcing his resignation in July Ford announced he was proud of accomplishments during his relatively short tenure I sincerely hope our engagement with the neighborhood will continue and flourish he wrote