Hunter
04/06/24
The North Liberty Officer and Sergeants Union have issued a release regarding the ongoing investigation into inappropriate conduct against Police Chief Diane Venenga.
In Friday’s release, the union thanked the citizens of North Liberty for their initial support, and the City for putting Venenga on paid administrative leave until an investigation is concluded.
The union has doubts whether the Lamson Dugan and Murray Law Firm will be fair and impartial in their independent investigation into the allegations, given their long standing relationship with the law firm that represents the city. However, the unions say they will defer judgement until after the investigation is completed.
The statement also took issue with the city’s claim that no issues or grievances were passed along to Chief Venenga or the City prior to their vote of no confidence. They said after a 2017 survey was completed, subsequent one-on-one interviews were conducted with City Administrator Ryan Heier. Additionally, Chief Venenga met with representatives of the department and agreed to address the issues at hand. The unions said Venenga failed to follow through on that agreement.
After serving the unanimous vote of no confidence, administrator Heier requested a meeting with individual officers and Chief Venenga, but union members didn’t feel comfortable meeting with the chief for fear of retaliation.
The NLPD Officers and Sergeant’s Union concluded their statement by promising to continue to provide the community with quality and effective protection while this matter is being resolved.
