Cops West Officer Reassigned While Conduct Under Scrutiny Neighbors Say That Without Officer Crime May Be On The Rise Again

After six weeks without a neighborhood resource officer, West Central residents told police Monday they are fed up and demand protection before criminals and hoodlums take over their streets.

Spokane Police Officer Ken Lesperance was reassigned in mid-July when an investigation was launched into allegations of misconduct.

Lesperance said he hasn’t been told details of the complaint or investigation.

“They haven’t told me what’s going on,” he said Tuesday morning. “There was one incident I know about that was a year and a half ago. I would tell you if I knew.

“It’s been hard on my family,” he added.

Police officials said the investigation is a “personnel matter” and refused to discuss details. However, police did say there was more than one incident involving Lesperance that’s being investigated.

“There are other issues that didn’t occur in the neighborhood,” Police Chief Terry Mangan said Tuesday.

Jim Smith, the city’s human resources director, said Lesperance is in the process of filing a complaint of his own against a city employee.

In the meantime, the West Central neighborhood is left without a full-time neighborhood resource officer.

At a Monday night meeting, residents complained about vandalism, graffiti, gangs and thieves creeping back into the neighborhood that pioneered community oriented policing.

“We’ve come out of the dark ages, and we aren’t going back,” said resident Paul Soper, who organized the meeting.

Lesperance, the neighborhood’s resource officer for almost two years, was moved to regular patrol duties in mid-July while under investigation. He recently returned to his desk after a three-week vacation. Resource officers help at neighborhood COP shops, are fixtures in the middle schools and a visible presence in the community. The officers provide links to other resources and are Safe Streets Now trainers.

“When Ken walked the neighborhood, he always had kids following him,” said COPS volunteer Marvin Pratt. “He always took the time just to say ‘Hi.”’

There are seven resource officers in the city.

Sue Mann, the other resource officer for northwest Spokane, is helping fill in for Lesperance. But she’s on vacation this week. Sgt. Dean Sprague has taken over some of the duties.

Sprague said he has recently been in the neighborhood painting over graffiti and patrolling in an unmarked car.

“People feel secure when the officer is there, but you and your neighbors need to watch out for each other,” said Sprague.

Police officials argue the neighborhood would have been without their resource officer for several weeks anyway, since Lesperance was on vacation much of this time.

But neighbors say that the regular presence of a uniformed officer, familiar with the neighborhood, is crucial.

“He was an officer who gave his heart to our neighborhood,” said one of the more than 50 neighbors who gathered at the West Central Community Center to protest the lack of police protection.

They told about children being harassed, a woman being sprayed with a hose and vegetables stolen from a garden.

“I want Ken back. I’m the one who goes home here, and I’m the one who feels unprotected,” said Hazel Tuckness.

“It is your job to get us an NRO and to get him here,” Lisa Samuels told Lt. Glenn Winkey and Sprague at the Monday meeting.

Sprague said no one expected the investigation to take as long as it has.

“We were working on the assumption that this would be resolved by now,” Sprague said.

But Mangan said, considering vacation schedules, the investigation hasn’t taken any longer than expected.

Winkey and Sprague quelled rumors that Lesperance had resigned or been fired.

“We’ve just hit the pause button,” said Sprague.

“Until this is wrapped up, it’s in Ken’s best interest to be out of the neighborhood,” said Sprague.

, DataTimes