A Fargo police officer who engaged in sexual activity in his squad car was suspended without pay for 15 days this summer, the department's harshest punishment in years, Chief Chris Magnus said Monday.
Bret Witte, a 26-year-old officer who joined the force in January 2000, admitted to the incident during an internal investigation that began in April. If not for his excellent track record, the remorse he showed and the cooperation he gave to investigators, Witte likely would have been fired, Magnus said.
"I think we sent a very strong message within the department that this sort of conduct was absolutely not going to be tolerated," Magnus said. "Officer Witte is aware that he's lucky that his employment wasn't terminated."
In his interview with Lt. Paul Laney, Witte said he brought an 18-year-old woman he had been dating along on patrol one night last August. During the patrol, the woman began stroking Witte above his uniform, some time between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m., and Witte drove his squad car to Lindenwood Park.
"How did it lead to the touching to Lindenwood Park in a secluded spot?" Laney asked Witte.
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"I don't know," Witte replied. "It just happened."
The two sat in the park for about 10 minutes, while she performed oral sex. Witte said he was on a lunch break at the time.
"What I did was wrong," Witte later told Magnus at a hearing. "I made a huge mistake."
Word about the incident spread through the department after the woman hinted about it to a group of officers at the West Acres mall. She told Laney she was frustrated with Witte because he wasn't returning her phone calls.
When Laney heard about the possible misconduct, he filed a formal complaint and began the investigation.
During separate interviews, the woman told Laney and detective Tammy Lynk that Witte did not coerce her into the act. During the few weeks they dated, Witte said, the woman rode along two to four times with him.
Ride-a-longs are common in the department, Magnus said, but officers are asked to fill out paperwork beforehand. Witte, who told Laney he was "pretty poor" with filling out the forms, said he never had the woman sign a waiver any of the times she came with him.
Witte told supervisors the August ride-a-long was the only time he engaged someone sexually on the job, and nothing in the investigation suggested otherwise, Magnus said.
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"He usually uses good judgment and a much greater degree of maturity than he exhibited in this incident," Magnus said.
Without looking at records, Magnus and Lt. Tod Dahle said two to three officers might get suspended in a given year. Usually such action is taken to correct performance issues and only lasts a few days at most, they said.
Witte's 15-day suspension, a penalty that cost him about $2,700 in wages, was the longest penalty since at least 1999, when Magnus became chief. Laney and other supervisors recommended a 20-day suspension for Witte, but Magnus reduced it.
Honesty is highly regarded in the department, Magnus said, and he wanted to reward Witte's cooperation.
Though it keeps public record of all complaints of its officers, the Fargo Police Department does not issue public announcements when an officer is suspended, Magnus said.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Dave Forster at (701) 241-5538
