uncle keith: eve of reckoning!!

Accusations and contradictions fueled a marathon city police commission hearing Friday afternoon and evening. Police Chief Uncle Keith defended himself against City Prosecutor Pope's allegations of misconduct in a roasting administrative boardroom at the town high school.

Pope said Uncle Keith chased former Alderman Rappe beyond the bounds of ethical police conduct. He also accused Uncle Keith of single-mindedly "headhunting" Rappe.

"Chief Keith crossed the line," he said. "I had to do something about this."

Uncle Keith denied each of Pope's accusations and denied that his investigation violated any ethical or procedural rules. "I agree with Mr. Pope on one thing," he told the police commission and small audience, "that nobody wants to be here today."

Rappe was arrested in April for misdemeanor sexual assault, battery and disorderly conduct in connection with a rowdy night at a tavern downtown in November 2003. Rappe pleaded no contest to disorderly conduct. County District Attorney O'Leary dropped the sexual assault and battery charges. Rappe later moved away.

Pope said Uncle Keith tried to influence his prosecutions of the women that Rappe, who was running for mayor during the investigation, was accused of groping.

Pope said Uncle Keith threatened to hit him with a complaint if he did not prosecute the women the way Uncle Keith wanted.

"My role as prosecutor of the city is not to do what Chief Keith wants me to do," Pope said.

Uncle Keith said in his rebuttal to the complaint that Pope was "very unprofessional" and "uncooperative" when the chief met with him to talk about the case.

Uncle Keith said he planned to file a state complaint against Pope before the attorney filed his complaint. He also said he thought Pope was trying to sabotage the case against the women.

He said Pope has "personal issues" with the department.

Pope denied the accusation.

"I'm personally offended by his remarks in his statement that I was trying to sabotage the case," Pope said.

Pope also accused Uncle Keith of trying to influence Municipal Judge Furan. In videotaped testimony, Furan said Uncle Keith called to tell him that the two women involved in the incident would lie about Uncle Keith's conduct.

Furan described what Uncle Keith told him.

"He says 'whatever happens, those b-- are lying,'" Furan said.

Balis, an administrative assistant for the police department, said she was in the room when Uncle Keith phoned Furan and testified that Uncle Keith did not describe the women as "a couple of lying b---."

Uncle Keith said Furan testified against him because he was angry about unflattering comments the chief made about the judge in his rebuttal to Pope's complaint.

"The statement that he provided is not accurate," Uncle Keith said.

Pope also accused Uncle Keith of floating the idea that if Rappe resigned from the city council and dropped out of the mayoral race, he would "make the charges go away."

Uncle Keith did do this, said City Administrator Ramona Flanigan.

"On more than one occasion, Chief Keith indicated that Rappe should know that if he resigned, the charges would go away," she said.

Uncle Keith said the city has a history of letting officials accused of crimes trade resignations for dropped charges.

Uncle Keith's questions aimed to show he only asked Flanigan if a deal with Rappe was an option. Flanigan said she did not believe Uncle Keith was asking, but telling.

Pope, along with former City Attorney Jeffrey Roethe, said Uncle Keith should have turned the case over to the County Sheriff's Department.

"The police department should not be doing the investigation of those people," said Roethe, who is a senior partner at Pope's law firm.

Pope's case was grounded in the accusation that Uncle Keith went after Rappe for political reasons.

Pope focused on the space between November 2003, when the incident allegedly occurred, and April, when the police department filed charges.

Uncle Keith's questions for Mayor McIntyre and Alderman Thompson jabbed at proving the delay had nothing to do with politics.

Uncle Keith sought to show that the police department and council were very busy and that some involved parties were hard to reach.

McIntyre, who reported the incident at the bar, testified that Uncle Keith was initially skeptical of the mayor's tip. He said Uncle Keith expressed worry that the arrest would look political.

Uncle Keith called several long-time police officers to testify that he did nothing unusual.

Former police officer Maves said he had studied the case. "Everything I looked at," he said "seemed entirely appropriate." It isn't standard to turn over investigations of elected officials to county cops, said a former town sheriff. "Anytime a police department receives a complaint from a citizen, their responsibility is to act on it," he said.

The hearing was still in progress at 8:30 p.m.

Commission counsel David Moore said the counsel will have to release findings by Wednesday.