Last week, Hammond Police Department Chief, Roddy Devall, was fired by recently elected Hammond Mayor Pete Panepinto. Devall was relieved of his duties for allegations when he ordered the public information officer Lieutenant Vince Giannobile to release a statement about another officer’s arrest, going against the department’s public information policy.
The statement contained the information of when Officer Jennifer Payne was arrested for doctor shopping and prescription drug fraud.
Doctor shopping is the practice of visiting multiple physicians to obtain multiple prescriptions for otherwise illegal drugs. It is a common practice of drug addicts and suppliers of drug addicts.
Despite the arrest, the charges against Payne were dropped by the district attorney’s office, and she returned to work in the Hammond Police Department.
The Hammond Police Department is in the process of looking for a new chief. The replacement does not necessarily have to be a current member of the department. He or she could come from outside the department as well.
The University Police Department has had a long working relationship with the Hammond department; members of both forces can be seen at school events, such as football games.
“The University Police Department has a strong, positive working relationship with the Hammond City Police Department,” said University Police Department Lieutenant Patrick Gipson. “We do not expect changes in personnel at the Hammond City Police Department to alter this relationship.”
Both departments are separate from each other. The University Police Department falls under the administration of the University while the Hammond Police Department looks to the city of Hammond.
Therefore, it is also unlikely the university’s own officers would be called off campus to make patrols around the city, and students should not expect to see fewer officers around campus.
According to Gipson, the number of officers at the University Police Department will not be changed.
“The University Police Department is dedicated to the safety and security of our campus community and will continue to be so,” said Gipson. “We do not expect changes in patrol activity.”
Since the University Police Department is its own department, there can be no influence from the mayor or the city in the staffing of the University Police Department either.
“Students should rest assured the University Police Department continues to be dedicated to the safety and security of our campus community,” said Gipson. “Changes in personnel at the Hammond City Police Department are not expected to diminish this resolution.”
For now, Hammond’s Director of Administration Lacy Landrum will be in charge of all the Hammond Police Department’s matters, while Assistant Chief Thomas Corkern will direct and supervise the department’s operation in the interim.