Top cop has conduct issues

The UW Police Department's (UWPD) Officer of the Year may have won the acclaim of rank-and-file officers for his hard work, but issues of professional conduct have peppered his disciplinary file.

A Daily request for the disciplinary files in Officer Michael Javorsky's personnel file has uncovered a number of incidents concerning professional conduct since his hiring in 1997. Disciplinary files for 2002 are in the process of review and release by the UWPD and the UW's Office of Public Records and Open Meetings.

His award comes as the UWPD's top ranks reevaluate employee recognition as part of a national reaccredidation process.

While Javorsky declined to comment, his supervisors fielded questions, acknowledging the past issues while praising his commitment to law enforcement.

Assistant Chief Ray Wittmier nominated Javorsky for his diligence to the job and willingness to tackle complicated tasks. Wittmier told The Daily, "I wouldn't say anything [with his conduct] gets in the way of his police work."

Javorsky, Wittmier said, has been critical to an investigation into the link among car prowlers and thieves on campus and in Des Moines and Federal Way. He has also tackled drug activity on campus, and laptop and bike thefts.

"He puts in a full day's work every time he comes in," Wittmier said. "I like that there are people like Mike that go the extra mile and take on the work."

With budget cuts, the UWPD has not been able to put as many resources into its detective staff. Patrol officers have been asked to take cases further than simply writing reports, and Javorsky has been one officer stepping up to the challenge, Wittmier said.

UWPD Chief Vicky Peltzer praised Javorsky as well.

"That guy loves to do police work," she said in an interview last week, adding that he is very good at following leads. "He knows how to talk to suspects ... he is very dedicated, highly motivated and has great intentions."

Peltzer acknowledged Javorsky has had a few issues in his past, which continued in 2002, but she declined to discuss them.

Last year, Javorsky was named in a high-profile incident involving Humza Chaudhry, president of the UW Muslim Student Association. At a pro-Israeli lecture April 10, 2002, Chaudhry was in a closed part of Kane Hall and alleges that Wittmier and Javorsky roughly escorted him out of the hall.

Two days later, Javorsky was involved in an incident at the Blockbuster video store at 4715 N.E. 25th St. The police department conducted a preliminary investigation into the incident, which is not a public record, Peltzer said. Sources within the UWPD said the incident was a heated exchange and a fight was provoked, while Peltzer said the Seattle Police Department responded. The city's officers arrested the other man, she said, who took responsibility for the incident. A request for the city police file is underway.

The UWPD preliminary investigation determined Javorsky acted properly, Peltzer said.

Javorsky's personnel file through the beginning of April last year reveals a number of other incidents; however, internal investigations where an officer is completely exonerated are not available for public inspection.

The UWPD hired Javorsky in August of 1997. He completed the academy and his field training by March of 1998. By August of that year, Javorsky had his first letter of discipline in his personnel file.

Dated Aug. 18, 1998, the letter was not a reprimand, but a "documentation of unprofessional behavior." It listed three incidents: speeding with a suspect in the car, teasing a suspect about his arrest and celebrating with a victim while teasing another suspect. The letter praises Javorsky's "initiative and enthusiasm" while saying "there has been deterioration in one specific area of your job performance: professional behavior."

Before the year ended, Javorsky had the first letter of reprimand added to his file. A suspected drug dealer on the Ave. complained of a pat down and verbal harassment by Javorsky Sept. 27, 1998. The matter was investigated, and Javorsky was exonerated Dec. 3. In the process of the investigation, however, he was reprimanded for not reporting the full details of the incident to his supervisors at the UWPD.

A few months later, Javorsky was disciplined for misuse of UWPD computers and time. An audit revealed he had used computers near the UWPD's holding cell and in the conference room to access adult sites and other inappropriate Web sites. A letter of reprimand warning of dismissal for any repeat violation was added to his personnel file Jan. 27, 1999.

In August of the same year, Javorsky met with UWPD Capt. Steve Robinson to discuss his "failure to accept constructive criticism." While the details of that meeting were not released during The Daily's inquiry, a follow-up letter from Sept. 2, 1999, referred to the meeting and said the officer had not complied with the corrective action plan set in August.

Excerpts from the September letter show the trepidation UWPD supervisors have carried with Javorsky. Robinson wrote, "I am extremely concerned by your contemptuous disregard for supervisors and inability to accept constructive criticism." He wrote he is aware of the positive work Javorsky has done and the arrests he has made, but "the positive aspects of your job performance are far outweighed by your inability to accept criticism and guidance form your supervisors."

Javorsky received a similar letter July 20, 2000, for a traffic stop during which he was the only officer and told the suspect "get the fuck in the car." A witness approached Javorsky about his treatment and a heated exchange followed. A supervisor was requested, arrived and eventually had to step between the two. Later, Javorsky was chided by the sergeant and disagreed with him, saying "people need to be told and corrected on the spot."

That year, another incident prompted an internal investigation. While working in Terry Hall, a female resident complained Javorsky had acted inappropriately the night of April 4, 2001, by "checking her out," and again when soliciting her phone number three days later seeing her intoxicated and offering her a ride to Terry.

Javorsky saw the woman serving alcohol in a coffee stand in Tommy's on the Ave. April 25, 2001. He suspected her to be underage and, when questioned, she provided an incorrect spelling of her name. He said the woman could be placed under arrest for frequenting a liquor establishment as a minor and for obstruction of justice. After some hysterics and some talking with Tommy's manager, Javorsky decided not to arrest the woman and allowed one of the woman's co-workers to take her home.

Javorsky, in response to questions raised during the UWPD internal investigation, said he did not cite the woman for a minor in possession violation April 7, 2001, because local judges want to see either possession or clear signs of consumption and neither of which were present.

Javorsky was exonerated of all the complaints by the woman Aug. 15, 2001. According to the letter closing the investigation, "To a third party, it would appear that the officer was indeed asking the complainant out on a date. UWPD policy does not specifically address asking someone out on a date while on duty. However, Officer Javorsky needs to be aware of the conflict of interest that can arise from such actions."

However, Javorsky was reprimanded for not communicating to the UWPD dispatch that he would be making contact with a suspect at Tommy's.

The issues of professional conduct, said Wittmier, have not changed over the years, Javorsky has worked with the UWPD. However, Javorsky does high-quality police work and his motivation and enthusiasm is clear, which is why Wittmier nominated him.

Peltzer characterized Javorsky's issues with conduct as just that: issues.

Peltzer said the UWPD plans to change the Officer of the Year award. She did not say the changes were due to Javorsky's winning the support of his fellow officers, but because the department is in the middle of renewing its national accreditation.

"We're rewriting our policy and procedures" manual, Peltzer said. The manual is a 40-chapter document and ought to be finished by fall, she estimated.

One of the chapters deals with the annual awards. In a department as small as the UWPD, monthly awards are not feasible, Peltzer said. In Albuquerque, N.M., where Peltzer worked for nearly 20 years, supervisors, rather than the staff, chose who should be recognized for hard work, she said.

"Under some circumstances, some officers should not be eligible," Peltzer said. "If someone received discipline resulting in a suspension, one should not be eligible."

Peltzer, however, did not say Javorsky was not deserving of the award for his work. The staff respects him; Peltzer said they "obviously do if they voted him the officer of the year."