Ex-officer's complaint gets state's attention

SAN BERNARDINO - A bitter clash between a retired lieutenant and top police administrators beginning in February 2007 has drawn the attention of state investigators.

Retired Lt. Don Soderbloom alleges that Police Chief Michael Billdt initiated investigations into his conduct in retaliation for a publicized memo accusing top administration officials of attempting to extort gratuity from a local restaurant.

Soderbloom alleges that Billdt and now-retired Assistant Chief Frank Mankin launched a baseless investigation into his conduct after he embarrassed them with accusations of attempting to bully the owner of the Castaway Restaurant into accepting less money than he was due for hosting the San Bernardino Police Department Reserve Banquet.

Soderbloom, a department veteran whose qualifications had many in the department thinking he would one day be chief, has taken his complaint to the state Department of Industrial Relations' Retaliation Unit, which opened an investigation into the matter in June.

"The essence of my complaint is the fact that Police Chief Michael Billdt and then Assistant Chief Frank Mankin fabricated a criminal complaint against me, which resulted in a frivolous DA investigation, in retaliation for my having voiced my opposition to their attempt to extort a gratuity from a local business," Soderbloom wrote in his complaint to the state department.

Billdt disagreed.

"Mr. Soderbloom's allegations are without merit and are an attempt to deflect personal responsibility for his conduct," Billdt said in a e-mail, adding that state law prohibits him from elaborating on the investigation.

"In regards to the three questions in your e-mail, state law, including the Police Officers' Bill of Rights, severely restricts the department from commenting on personnel investigations," Billdt wrote in an e-mail to The Sun. "Under these circumstances, it would be inappropriate for me to comment here on the details of those investigations."

Soderbloom, 51, points to a dust-up with police administration in February 2007 as the beginning of the end of his 27-year career with the department.

In a memo dated Feb. 12, 2007, Soderbloom alleged that Billdt and Mankin demanded that the Castaway manager cut the department's bill by more than $1,100 after the restaurant prepared meals for 42 more guests than had originally been agreed upon.

"What occurred here is no different, at least in my opinion, than a patrol officer soliciting a gratuity," Soderbloom wrote in the memo.

Billdt, in the same e-mail, said he initially balked at paying because alcohol was on the bill, which he said should not be paid for with city funds and could expose the city to liability.

But after initially refusing, the department paid the full bill, which came to $9,154.

"First, I believe that using scarce taxpayer dollars to buy alcohol at this function lacked good judgment." Billdt wrote. "Second, using city funds to purchase and serve alcoholic beverages to those who attended the event could have exposed the city to liability. I fully stand by my decision."

But Soderbloom said relations were icy after the confrontation, and alleges that Billdt and Mankin trumped up accusations to prompt a retaliatory investigation less than one month later.

Soderbloom said he had never before been the subject of such controversy.

"There was never anything negative on my file until this," Soderbloom said. "But I'd do it all over again on principle."

Soderbloom alleges the manner in which the investigation unfolded demonstrates a departure from normal department procedure.

Soderbloom said an allegation suddenly emerged, at first without his knowledge, that in January 2007 he had attempted to dissuade a fellow officer from filing charges against a bartender caught serving alcohol to a minor at the same restaurant where police hold their annual banquet.

According to Soderbloom, the department did not conduct a preliminary in-house investigation to substantiate the allegations for three months. Weeks after he wrote his memo, they convinced the DA to open an investigation into his conduct, Soderbloom said.

"Billdt and Mankin should have been required to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the DA that there was evidence in support of their allegations," Soderbloom said. "This amounted to nothing more than a witch hunt."

Billdt declined comment on the investigations, citing what he said were state law restrictions on commenting on personnel matters.

As evidence for his retaliation claim, Soderbloom cites six examples of officers accused of criminal conduct in recent years, including Sgt. Bradley Lawrence, who is the subject of an internal investigation to determine whether he unlawfully detained people.

In his examples, the department conducted in-house investigations before deciding whether there was sufficient evidence to justify referring the matter to the DA for review, according to Soderbloom.

Billdt declined to comment on the different approaches taken in the Soderbloom and Lawrence investigations.

In addition to the current state investigation, Soderbloom said he is looking to trigger a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the department and its leadership for what he calls "far-reaching corruption."

"The kind of corruption Billdt is encouraging is what you see in Third World countries," Soderbloom said.

Billdt acknowledged the Department of Industrial Relations' inquiry.

"We have given them complete cooperation, and I am confident in our position with respect to this matter," he said.

Soderbloom has a reputation in the department as a mentor to younger officers who isn't afraid to speak his mind.

"Don is a very highly respected guy in the organization," said Sgt. Rich Lawhead, president of the police union. "Guys gravitated to him because he was always fair and always consistent. He really helped advance a lot guys' careers."

During the 2005 mayoral campaign, Soderbloom supported the eventual loser, City Attorney James F. Penman. Some officers believe that had Penman won, Soderbloom would have headed the short list of candidates to be the next chief.

Instead, Mayor Pat Morris won, and tapped then-interim chief Billdt as his police leader after Garrett Zimmon left.

As for the Lawrence investigation, which was opened only after a second officer lodged a complaint against him, Soderbloom said it shows the inconsistency in the way in which the administration deals with allegations of misconduct.

"They pick and choose who they want to target," Soderbloom said.

The case is an example of his allegations, he said.

"There are at least two criminal allegations against him, and they conduct the investigation in-house," Soderbloom said. "In my case, there wasn't any evidence I did anything inappropriate."

Leaders of nearby departments, including Redlands, Fontana and Rialto, said that generally allegations of violations of department policy are handled internally, while criminal allegations against staff are referred to an outside agency, usually the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department.

Assistant District Attorney Dennis Christy said as a general rule, police departments will conduct investigations before sending results to the district attorney.

But, Christy said, it may be incorrect to assert that bringing in the DA earlier in the process is some form of retaliation.

"It is not an indication of bias to have an investigation conducted by an outside agency," Christy said. "It may be to dispel any idea that bias is involved that the case is referred to an outside agency."

For Soderbloom, who has been retired since August 2007, the bitterness of how his career ended hasn't softened. He alleges that after the DA came back with an initial finding that he didn't engage in any criminal behavior, the chief three times prodded them to broaden the scope and conduct further probes, all of which came back clean.

After that, Soderbloom said, they opened an internal investigation, essentially a reversal of the normal process.

"Billdt invested hundreds of hours, at a cost to the city of tens of thousands of dollars to the city, to pursuing an internal investigation following my retirement from the department," Soderbloom said.