Fail To the Chief

  

 An Astounding hour-
long live drama in Montgomery City Hall.

   The news conference held by Mayor Todd Strange and Police Chief Kevin Murphy today was an hour long He said, He said affair, with lots of agreement on principle, and occasional bouts of tension.
     The end result is this: Murphy will stay on paid administrative leave till the end of September, and then retire with full benefits.
     Some things we learned:

File photo, Montgomery City Council Chambers

• Public Safety Director Chris Murphy, who was not at the news conference, in the audience in the news conference but did not join the Chief and the Mayor up front, cancelled a contract for an annual officers holiday luncheon at the RSA owned Renaissance Hotel and Convention Center in Downtown Montgomery, and did so without telling the chief he was doing so. The Mayor pointed out the chief does not have the power to sign contracts.
• When Chief Murphy and Mayor Strange met a week ago, on Friday the 13th, Strange in essence told Murphy he was to retire, like it or not.
• Some officers had gone to the Mayor complaining about a "hostile work environment" and bullying in the department, both serious code words for lawsuits and state or federal action against the department.
• Murphy seemed disappointed there were not more police officers in the city council chamber during the news conference, and said he "wished more could have been there".
• Chief of Staff John Brown will become acting chief.
• A city resident, a former candidate for mayor, criticized Strange, saying he wanted to run the police department. But as even the chief said several times, Strange does run the police department. "I serve at the pleasure of the mayor," said Murphy. And the mayor was no longer pleased.
• Finally, as Murphy has said on Friday, as as Alabama News Network reported that same day, he is not through with Public Service. Who knows? Maybe he'll run for Mayor.
•  
• [UPDATE: 7:30pm. Mayor Strange was a guest on TalkBack in the 5:00pm news and he said if he had not acted in forcing Chief Murphy out, he "would have lost control of the police department".]