Pacific Police Chief John Calkins Allegedly Drives Drunk, Intimidates Witnesses, Obstructs Investigations and Still Has a Job
Millions of unemployed Americans want to know: Who do they have to sleep with to get John Calkins' job security? Calkins is the police chief for Pacific, Wa, a small town of 5,500 which he apparently runs like a lesser version of Joe Don Baker in Walking Tall.
John Calkins: What Buford Pusser might look like had he been born in Washington.
KOMO News has had Calkins in their crosshairs since May when they found out he was involved in four separate "incidents" since 2001, including allegations of drunk driving, intimidating a witness and obstructing justice. Now, thanks to their doggedness, they have more details. And more evidence of Calkins acting like a bully.
After KOMO's initial report, Pacific Mayor Rich Hildreth asked a neighboring sheriff's office to conduct an independent investigation of Calkins. They found that in two out of the four incidents Calkins abused his power.
In the first, Calkins allegedly used his gun and car to intimidate his wife's ex-husband. The second incident stemmed from the police chief's DUI arrest in 2008.
When an officer in nearby Bonney Lake pulled him over Calkins flashed his badge. To the arresting officer's credit he didn't let the chief walk.
But like a smart cop, Calkins refused a blood test. And a jury acquitted him months later citing a lack of evidence.
Said Calkins' peer, Bonney Lake Chief Mike Mitchell: "I can't help but believe that was a way to say, 'Time out. I'm the chief. Let me go home...He's been a police officer for a long time. He knows how to work the system."
Mayor Hildreth, though, disagrees. After the investigation he sent Calkins a note telling him his job was safe.
1 comment(s)
Polly Baker says:
Copwatch.net has also been watching Police Chief John Calkins too. There are a couple of different threads on him from intimidation to being drunk. They have been watching criminal cops for some time, and have amassed a list of nearly 16,000 criminal cops.
Posted On: Thursday, Oct. 29 2009 @ 10:00AM