More allegations against police officials revealed
By Marley Shebala
Navajo Times
WINDOW ROCK, Dec. 22, 2011
Under federal, state and tribal laws, if an individual working in public safety is convicted of domestic violence, he or she is prohibited from carrying a weapon.
A domestic violence conviction would also prevent that individual from supervising law enforcement personnel under those laws.
Billison is currently facing allegations by Crownpoint Criminal Investigations Supervisor Robert Platero that Billison had him suspended in an effort to squelch Platero's investigation into a claim that Billison pointed his service weapon at and threatened a retired police officer in 2009. (See separate story and Dec. 15, 2011, issue.)
Now, information about a 2004 domestic violence complaint brought against Billison in Phoenix, and against an officer close to him, is also raising questions about how he passed the background check necessary to occupy his current position.
In 2004, Maricopa County Superior Court issued a one-year domestic violence protection order against Billison after a woman claimed that he repeatedly "physically, sexually and verbally assaulted" her while he was on drinking binges.
The complaint detailed several incidents of extreme violence. According to the court record, Billison did not respond to the hearing summons and did not appeal the protection order that was issued against him Dec. 9, 2004.
Billison did not respond to requests for comment on this story as of press time Wednesday.
Erny Zah, spokesman for President Ben Shelly, said Dec. 14 that according to Shelly, the protection order against Billison had been "vacated."
However, Maricopa County Superior Court staff report that the petition and protection order were never vacated or cancelled and that Billison never filed a response to either document. The one-year order expired on its own in 2005.
Earlier this year, when Billison was up for consideration as DPS director by the incoming Shelly administration, he got a clean background check from Criminal Investigator Alvernon Tsosie, with no mention of the 2004 protection order.
This, according to an anonymous source inside DPS, was no accident. Billison is alleged to have returned the favor by burying a state investigation into domestic violence by Tsosie.
Within weeks of Billison's confirmation by the Council in April, he announced that he was promoting Tsosie to supervisor of Internal Affairs.
Internal Affairs is akin to the Ethics and Rules Office - it monitors the conduct of law enforcement personnel and recommends discipline, including suspension and removal, if an investigation confirms misconduct.
Tsosie's promotion did not go through, however, because on April 29, his estranged wife Loretta Tsosie filed a complaint alleging domestic violence that spanned four years. One incident was witnessed by two of his fellow officers, she said.
Because her complaint involved a police officer, it prompted two separate investigations, one by Internal Affairs and one by the Criminal Investigations Department.
Loretta Tsosie told the investigators that she decided to file the complaint after learning that Tsosie had received an award from the U.S. attorney's office for outstanding domestic violence victim assistance work, given April 14 during National Crime Victims' Rights Week.
Alvernon Tsosie, who continues to work as a criminal investigator for the department, did not respond to questions from the Navajo Times by press time on Wednesday.
Investigation buried?
Loretta Tsosie said in her complaint that the first abuse occurred years ago when Tsosie was drinking with his friends, officers Frank Bradley and Roscoe Herrera. All three officers were off duty at the time.
"Alvernon was intoxicated and he started to physically push her around when Bradley and Herrera had to physically restrain him and pull him away from her," the police report recounts her stating. "As a result of Alvernon's actions, Bradley and Herrera took away his law enforcement-issued gun for her and his safety."
There's no record of Bradley or Herrera reporting Tsosie's conduct. Loretta Tsosie did not report the incident at the time it occurred because she was "embarrassed," feared for her life, and didn't want to jeopardize Tsosie's law enforcement career, she told police in April.
She also alleges that Alvernon Tsosie choked her with a telephone cord on Sept. 10, 2001, in front of her daughter.
Her daughter convinced her to report that assault but when they met with Police Sgt. Wallace Billie, Loretta said he convinced them not to pursue it because it wouldn't be in Alvernon's "best interest."
Loretta Tsosie alleges an incident in Laughlin, Nev., when Alvernon threw her out of a vehicle and punched her in the mouth.
She said he has verbally threatened to kill her and bury her body on the reservation where no one would find it.
Alvernon Tsosie also has threatened to kill himself, she said, adding that on two occasions he put his service weapon to his head in her presence. One occurred when he was distraught over child support matters and the other when he admitted having an affair with another member of the police department.
Loretta Tsosie stated that she had previously lied to Criminal Investigator Darrell Boye when he interviewed her as part of the background investigation done when her husband was advancing to the position of criminal investigator.
She said when she told Boye things were fine at home, she was in fact suffering physical and verbal abuse.
According to the police report, Internal Affairs investigator Erik Francisco assured Loretta Tsosie that his office would recommend that Tsosie be placed on administrative leave and that his service weapon and credentials be secured for her safety and the department's liability.
However, the Internal Affairs investigation was then turned over to the Arizona Department of Public Safety because higher-ups in the tribal police agency were concerned about a potential conflict of interest, a move that infuriated the tribe's IA investigators.
ADPS Criminal Investigator Mel Cody confirmed that his agency investigated Loretta Tsosie's allegations and that the completed investigation was delivered to the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety in late July.
Cody and his supervisor, Criminal Investigations Sgt. Mike Livingston, said in separate interviews Wednesday that since the investigation involved a tribal law officer rather than one of their own, ADPS did not forward its findings to the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board, which certifies law enforcement personnel including tribal police officers.
The certification process involves a background check that shows that the individual "has not engaged in conduct or a pattern of conduct that would jeopardize public trust in the law enforcement profession, and is of good moral character."
Livingston emphasized that it was up to the tribal Internal Affairs office to review the state investigation and come up with its own findings and recommendations.
And Boye, who handled the criminal side of Loretta Tsosie's complaint, explained to her that filing criminal charges would be difficult because of the lack of evidence.
Enemies list
Meanwhile, Billison moved recently to muzzle another source of criticism.
He filed an ethics complaint against Edmund Yazzie (Church Rock/Iyanbito/Mariano Lake/Pinedale/Smith Lake/Thoreau), chair of the Council's Law and Order Committee, which has been looking into complaints about the way Billison runs DPS.
Yazzie said Dec. 14 that Billison's complaint against him was retaliation against him and the committee for investigating reports by tribal police captains and sergeants about Billison's heavy-handed administration.
The complaints include the alleged cover-up of Platero's investigation of Billison's behavior, and the state's investigation of Tsosie.
Yazzie confirmed that the committee received information that Billison was convicted of domestic violence and that a protection order was issued against him.
"These are serious charges," Yazzie said.
"When it comes to domestic violence and firearms, it's pretty serious," he said, referring to Billison's actions at the poker game. "The committee took these charges seriously. We wrote letters to President Ben Shelly and we've never received a response."
Shelly's spokesperson, Erny Zah, said on Dec. 14, "We can't comment on any investigation."
"The issue was discussed during Mr. Billison's confirmation hearing before the Navajo Nation Council," Zah emphasized. "Mr. Billison was confirmed by the Council."
During the Council confirmation of Billison in April, Leonard Tsosie (Baca-Prewitt/Casamero Lake/Counselor/Littlewater/Ojo Encino/Pueblo Pintado/Torreon/Whitehorse Lake) brought up Billison's involvement in domestic violence, but the issue was taken to executive session.
After the executive session, the Council voted 21-1 to confirm Billison.
"President Ben Shelly asked Mr. Billison to bring structure, stability and accountability to the Division of Public Safety," Zah said. "To date, we believe Mr. Billison is doing so."
Yazzie noted that federal law prohibits anyone working in law enforcement from carrying a firearm if he or she has a domestic violence conviction.
"As a committee of the Council, we cannot turn our heads away," he said. "The committee will continue looking into these charges and others."
Ethics Office Director Lawrence John said last week that Billison's complaint against Yazzie is not available for public review while it is under investigation by the ethics office.