By Ernesto Londoño
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, March 24, 2006; A01
Montgomery County Police Chief J. Thomas Manger called on the department's union yesterday to take down an online message board that some police officers have used as a forum for disparaging, and sometimes racist, remarks about colleagues, supervisors, immigrants and other members of the community.
The union said it would not shut down the board, saying that it serves a legitimate purpose and that doing so would curtail officers' right to free speech.
The offensive messages were roundly condemned by county officials and community leaders.
"Let me be very clear. There is no place in our police department . . . for racism, bigotry and hatred," County Executive Douglas M. Duncan (D) said. "As public servants, we not only take an oath to uphold the law, but we have a moral obligation to guarantee that the law is applied equally and fairly to everyone in our community."
Duncan said that if the union doesn't disable the message board, access to the site will be restricted from county workplaces.
Some of the messages, copies of which were published in The Washington Post yesterday, refer to Latino immigrants as "beaners." Others make sexual references to female officers and disparage some officers as "racists."
Margo Pave, an attorney for the Montgomery County Fraternal Order of Police, defended the message board and criticized the county's request that it be shut down.
"Certainly, if he wishes to approach us to talk about this, we can," she said, referring to Manger. "I don't think the proper channel for this discussion is through the press. They have our phone number. They can call."
Pave said the excerpts provided to The Post do not reflect the "bread and butter" of the discussions on the board, which she said has given officers, emboldened by anonymity, an opportunity to challenge their leaders and departmental policy.
"We neither censor or endorse what is on there," she said. She criticized the county's threat to block access to the site from county computers, saying that if Duncan "has that dim an opinion of free speech, I guess that's where he stands."
Manger did not respond to an interview request yesterday.
In a brief e-mail, he said yesterday's Post article misled readers because it "did not make it clear, whatsoever, that this is a private chat room, owned and operated by a private business. The reaction from the community demonstrated that they are left with the impression that the Police Dept. is the responsible organization."
Several community leaders and officers said yesterday that although they understand the department has no direct control over the board and its content, the command staff has largely ignored concerns about the messages.
Detective Terry Ridgley, president of the black officers association, said he met with Manger to bring the issue to his attention several months ago. He said Manger was attentive and seemed concerned but didn't ask to see the messages.
Portions of the messages from the password-protected forum -- which may be accessed only by union members -- were turned over to police internal affairs investigators in at least two instances, said Lt. Eric Burnett, a police spokesman. He said he could not disclose the outcome of those cases.
"I heard from a lot of officers who are happy that this finally came out," Ridgley said. He stressed that he doesn't think the offensive messages reflect the values and professionalism of the majority of officers. Many of them feel the vitriolic content has harmed morale and strained trust among officers, Ridgley said.
County Council member Phil Andrews (D-Gaithersburg-Rockville), who heads the council's public safety panel, called on the union to "begin policing themselves. Otherwise the despicable comments will tarnish the reputation of an excellent department."
Black and Latino leaders said they will schedule meetings with Manger to discuss the message board because they say he is responsible for the conduct of the county's officers.
"I'm flabbergasted," said Del. Ana Sol Gutierrez (D-Montgomery). "If there is one agency where Montgomery County cannot tolerate one iota of racism and xenophobia, it is our police department. Chief Manger must take immediate action to remove any police officer who hides behind the anonymity of the Internet to attack the immigrants, the minorities and women they are hired to protect."
Henry Hailstock, president of the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP, said he has met with at least 15 officers who approached him with concerns about some of the board's content. He said he holds Manger primarily responsible for what he described as a lackluster internal response to officers' concerns.
"He is the leader," Hailstock said. "There are some things management can do to let officers responsible for this know that it is not going to be tolerated and that if they're found doing this, they are going to be disciplined."
Kim Propeak, a spokeswoman for Casa of Maryland Inc., a group that has worked with the department to build trust between officers and the county's immigrants, said she is disheartened.
"I read that story, and I thought: We've just been set back 20 years," Propeak said. "I was outraged. I couldn't finish eating breakfast."
