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Clampdown at the Providence Police Department

Esserman imposes tougher standards, but some cops cite inconsistent discipline
By TE-PING CHEN  |  October 31, 2007
petrellainsiodee
FORCED OUT: While a few parts of Petrella’s case remain unclear, his termination reflects the chief’s
heightened reliance on Internal Affairs.

At age 42, former Providence Police sergeant Steven Petrella has the look of a besieged man. Pacing frenetically, gesturing, and periodically stooping to light cigarettes, Petrella cuts a strange, embattled figure against the suburban stillness of the driveway outside his Warwick home.
 
It is 11 pm on a recent Thursday. For hours, Petrella has been narrating the story of what he sees as his unjust termination in 2005 from the Providence Police — a situation for which he blames his former employer, the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), and especially the department’s high-profile leader, Colonel Dean Esserman.
 
It is a story that seems to be consuming Petrella. How he, a 12-year veteran of the Providence department, lost the chance to fight for his job because of a missed deadline for an administrative hearing.
 
While it’s hard to know if there’s more to the case, the underlying details involve a 2003 episode in which Petrella traveled, while on-duty, to Cranston and agreed to return to the station a mini-bike that had been seized by another officer. Though Petrella says he did nothing wrong, the department suspected him of trying to cover for the other officer, who was later convicted of embezzlement and fired. 
 
The fallout is all the more striking because of how some other Providence police officers who have run into trouble, including some of those implicated in a cheating scandal under former chief Urbano Prignano Jr., have fared far more favorably, for various reasons.

And Petrella is only one of many Providence officers who have lost their jobs since Esserman, who was recruited by Mayor David N. Cicilline, arrived in 2003.
 
Inspector Frank Colon, the director of Internal Affairs, declines to reveal how many officers have lost their jobs — because, he says, it would be bad for morale — but it’s clear that Esserman has raised the focus on internal discipline. Colon says that more officers have been fired, demoted, or disciplined under Esserman than during any comparable period in the past two decades. Previously, there was a lower threshold for becoming part of Internal Affairs’ six-person staff (which the FOP says has doubled under Esserman); now, says Colon, those who police the police must, at minimum, attain the rank of detective.
 
For years under former Mayor Vincent A. “Buddy” Cianci Jr., Providence’s dysfunctional and politicized police department was marked by scandal, a reputation for using excessive force, and a lack of accountability. In this respect, Esserman — who has been credited with bringing about a far more responsive and more effective police department, as well as significant drops in violent crime (see “Provi¬dence: safer than you think?,” News, May 24) — may be trying to rid the force of what he considers problem officers.
 
Nevertheless, Petrella says that his case raises questions about the success of internal reforms in the department. “I didn’t lose my job — they took it from me,” he says. “Where’s the integrity in this?”
 
In September, Petrella’s lawyer, John B. Harwood, the former Speaker of the Rhode Island House of Representatives, filed a Superior Court lawsuit against the Fraternal Order of Police, accusing the union of failing to make a timely filing of the pa¬per¬work needed to guarantee the Officer’s Bill of Rights hearing that might have saved Petrella’s job. It’s the first suit against the 900-member union in recent memory.
 
Moving forward his case in court remains the sole hope for the former officer, whose sense of betrayal about the Providence Police Department is palpable, punctuating his nearly every sentence. “I put on a bulletproof vest for 12 years for the city,” says Petrella, “and they just kicked me to the curb.”

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Comments
Clampdown at the Providence Police Department
Colonel Esserman is not a Cop he may wear the uniform of a Cop but he has no clue what it is like to be a Cop. This man has never responded to a bar room brawl a domestic disturbance a shots fired call. The Colonel thinks of himself as Gods gift to Law Enforcement he is condescending, arrogant, abussive disrespectful, cocky and bullies Officers. He has stated that every Officer that was hired during the Cianci Administration is corrupt because they either paid or knew someone who get them the job. The Colonel claims to have cleaned House when he took over yet he promoted a Captain to Major who was video taped drinking by a pool in Florida with a material witness in a murder case. The witness was himself involved in the murder but was going to testify againt the other parties involed and was supposed to be locked up in the old Head Quarters and monitored at all times. The witness was allowed to have visitors which brought him cocaine he was allowed to go sky diving and was found dead in a car in Connecticut after sky diving cocaine was found in the car and in the system of the witness. Several of the Officers that were involved in protecting this witness retired with a disability pension or an ordinary pension. The Captain who was promoted to Major by Esserman was suspended for two years without pay. The rumor is that he got to keep his job because he kept his mouth shut and didn't implicate other Officers involved but I guess that embarrising incident didn't affect the Colonel's decision in promoting this Captain to Major. The Colonel has had several run in's with Officers from other departments yelling at them for not saluting him one particular incident occured at a funeral in front of officers from several departments in which a female Trooper didn't salute the Colonel (there is no protocol) that states you have to salute a Superior from another department and given the fact the Colonel was in Civilian Clothes and the Trooper was new she didn't recognize him. The Colonel chewed her out stating "do you know who I am" the Trooper respectively stated she didn't and the Colonel stated I am the Colonel of the Providence Police Department. The Trooper left a letter to her Superior who was not happy with Essermans additude towards his Trooper. Esserman has had run in's with Airport Police and TSA at Green Airport were he was degrading and belligerent towards these Officers. If a poll was taken about weather the Colonel was liked or disliked by Chiefs and Officers from other departments the majority would be "disliked" because of his ego, he is not a Cop which is a privlidge and an honor which he has not earned. What happened to Sergeant Petrella was a disgrace Sergeant Petrella is a good man and a very good Cop. He would give the shirt off his back to a stranger never mind take a bullet for one. I feel that something that was not mentioned in this story was that in 1994 or 1995 Sergeant Petrella was caught in the cross fire of approximately seventy rounds that were fired at a car from Officers from four departments. Sergeant Petrella was not struck by one bullet"amazing" seventy rounds but does Esserman take that and all the other good Police work Sergeant Petrella did take into consideration? "no" because he is not a Cop he can play one like they do on TV but he will never be one no matter how long he wears a Providence Police Uniform. Colonel Esserman is a Politician when things are going good in the City he reaps all the rewards but when they are going bad he doesn't hesitate to show up at a Roll call to let the hard working and couragous Officers know in his opinion what a lousy job they are doing. he will not hesitate to get into an Officers face and degrade him or her telling them if he had it his way he would fire them. The officers Bill Of Rights doesn't matter to him in fact he would do whatever he could to abolish it. Esserman has more compassion for a criminal and wants to see them get a fair trial but would rather fire an Oficer without giving them the right to defend themselves from even a minor infraction or the frivolous complaint to Internal Affairs of a person or persons who are not happy with the out come from an Officers decision. If Officers did some of the things that have been mentioned in my comments that Colonel Esserman has done they would be displined up to termination so what does that say about Colonel Esserman is he above the rules and regulations he is supposed to enforce. In his mind he is.
By Pride wearing the Badge on 11/10/2007 at 6:58:04
Clampdown at the Providence Police Department
Another great decision by Colonel Esserman was putting Inspector Colon in charge of the Internal Affairs Division. By Colon's standards he himself should have been fired years ago. Colon shot an unarmed man (he called in many favors to make it go away), fired his weapon in one of the department’s substations and made charges disappear when one of his own family members was charged for drug possession. This is a man who is in charge of policing the police. Are you kidding?
By Fed up with Esserman on 11/26/2007 at 5:20:53
Clampdown at the Providence Police Department
Does anybody know the names of the two Providence Police members of The Internal Affairs Bureau who illegally entered, with-out warrant, into and on to the home and premise of another Providence Police Officer, and why The Warwick Police allowed this when they were specifically told by the Officer that they were not to allow this when this Officer was not present at home.(in which he was not!) Personal items not belonging to The Providence Police were illegally taken. Botton line is that this illegal incident is a shame!!!
By WHO POLICES FRANK COLON? on 01/11/2008 at 6:50:50
Clampdown at the Providence Police Department
I would like to know if Petrella was a Sgt. when the mini-bike incident occurred? If not, why would he have been promoted to Sgt. if the mini-bike incident was still under investigation? The people of Providence should be given a response to this legitimate question.
By WHO POLICES FRANK COLON? on 01/11/2008 at 8:59:43

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