To The Editor:

In the weeks since the article regarding my concerns about our local police first appeared in the Reporter, I have been bombarded by questions, comments and personal stories from local residents. Those questions and Mr. Novak’s recent letter to the editor (October 4 Reporter) have led me to write this letter.

Despite Chief Read’s statements in the September 6 Reporter, I still have trouble seeing how TMC Trucking being owned by a local police officer is not a conflict of interest. The chief states that TMC is “on a list of local towing companies” but fails to mention that it is the only company located on Shelter Island and therefore the only company that can easily respond after the ferries close or when a truck is needed immediately.

Further, Chief Read states that TMC responds to “accidents, disabled vehicles or when the drivers involved do not have a preference for another service,” it should be noted that tow trucks are also used when a police officer determines that a car must be impounded following a traffic stop, accident or a situation where a vehicle is parked improperly. The following is from the town code:

Ҥ 8-3. Standards of behavior:

“F. Each Town employee shall abstain from making personal investments in enterprises which he has reason to believe may be directly involved in decisions to be made by him or which will otherwise create substantial conflict between his duty in the public interest and his private interest.

“G. Each Town employee shall endeavor to pursue a course of conduct which will not raise suspicion among the public that he is likely to be engaged in acts that are in violation of his trust.”

It seems clear that when the person who decides to impound a vehicle is also the person who stands to directly profit, there is a clear conflict of interest.

In Mr. Novak’s letter, he asked two important questions. Regarding who would pay should my lawsuit against the town prevail, he said, “It will be the Shelter Island taxpayers, if not the individual accused.” Since the individual accused was on duty at the time, state law protects him from personal legal action; any payment would come from the town and/or the town’s insurance. Mr. Novak also asks if “we will ever be told the amount?” In almost every instance I have found of a local municipality settling a small suit such as this, the plaintiff agrees to remain silent as part of the deal, effectively shielding the municipality from any “bad press.”

In theory, both the police and the Town Board are public servants who work for the taxpayer and should be accountable for their actions. The truth of the matter is that the legal system protects them at the public’s expense. Complaints against officers are not public record. An officer could have zero complaints against them or a hundred and we would never know. Lawsuits against a municipality are handled out of the public view, with settlements paid for by insurance companies.

Chief Read believes that “the vast majority of the community is very comfortable with the police department.” I ask that you ask your friends, neighbors and local workers and see if you come to the same conclusion.

BENJAMIN HEINS, SHELTER ISLAND