Cincinnati Police Chief Tom Streicher knew he would be second-guessed — even by his own officers — after suspending his African-American assistant chief July 12 and accusing him of lying about a car wreck.

Streicher

        But, “I stand behind my position,” the chief said Tuesday, in his first extensive public comments about Lt. Col. Ron Twitty. “And I understand it's not a popular one. In this job, sometimes I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't.

        “Do I like it?” he asked. “It doesn't matter. ”

        Col. Twitty pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor Tuesday in connection with the July 4 damage to his city-owned car. He was fined $1 and agreed to retire from a police force he's served for almost three decades.

        Almost immediately, Cincinnati's city manager said she was launching a nationwide search for a new assistant chief. Col. Twitty, one of four assistant chiefs, headed the investigations bureau.

        Chief Streicher said he hopes the plea deal taken by Col Twitty shows the rest of the 1,020-officer force that standards apply to everyone who works for him.

        “You talk about a standard of honesty and integrity,” the chief said. “Those are the standards that are set for the Police Department. And they apply to everybody. ... I wish the community would view it the same way.”

        He said he knows “there's a portion of the community that's never going to accept” that Col. Twitty — the only African-American ever to reach the rank of assistant police chief — was accused of wrongdoing.

        “But there's a huge number of people who have contacted me and come up to me and said they support me. And there's some portion of people who just don't care,” the chief said. “I believe I was bound by law.”

        On July 12, Chief Streicher put Col. Twitty, 52, on paid leave. The move came three days after the chief learned the assistant chief's 2001 Ford Taurus needed $3,300 in repairs after a mysterious accident July 4.

        Col. Twitty said the car must have been damaged by a hit-and-run driver in front of his Bond Hill home while he slept. The chief doubted that, in part because there was no debris at the scene.

        On Tuesday, officers offered mix reactions to the plea agreement. Some said they thought the whole matter left the entire force with a black eye, particularly because the only penalty was a $1 fine. Roger Webster, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, said he thought most officers were just glad to have the issue resolved. “Guys are saying they're just glad to get it over with,” he said. “You know, they're just saying, "Thank God this is over. Let's put it behind us.”'

        Chief Streicher said he expects to start talking at length with Ms. Lemmie about replacing Col. Twitty. A national search could result in the first outside hire for a command staff position in the department's history, something allowed by last year's approval by voters of Issue 5, a civil-service reform measure.

        But the outside search likely will be challenged by the FOP, especially if Col. Twitty retires before the current civil-service test expires in mid-October. Union members think that test remains in effect for another month. If so, Capt. Stephen Gregorie, now commander of the internal investigations section, would get the job.

        Col. Twitty's letter of resignation — delivered to the city by fax at 4:09 p.m. Tuesday — says his retirement will be effective within 90 days. Ms. Lemmie said she doesn't expect to take any action before that time. She also said she would provide a process for citizen input into her decision, similar to what she did in Dayton, Ohio. While city manager there, she selected William P. McManus, a former assistant chief in Washington, D.C.

        Scotty Johnson, president of the Sentinel Police Association, a group of black officers, declined to comment. An ardent supporter of Col. Twitty's since the matter came to light, Mr. Johnson said last week that if Col. Twitty did not return to the job, he would hope Ms. Lemmie would take advantage of the opportunity to look nationally.

        Chief Streicher said Col. Twitty's $1 fine did not undermine the importance of the integrity lesson.

        “The penalty itself isn't the issue,” he said. “It's not even a concern of mine.”

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