By Erica C. Barnett
Jamie Tompkins, the former chief of staff to ex-Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz, resigned yesterday amid allegations that she lied to the city’s Office of of Inspector General during an investigation into whether her hiring by Diaz, with whom she allegedly had a romantic relationship, was inappropriate.
SPD confirmed Tompkins’ resignation this morning.
According to OIG, Tompkins falsified a handwriting sample she provided to investigators. The office has not said what handwritten document they were trying to confirm Tompkins wrote. The OIG investigation is wrapping up and will head to Mayor Bruce Harrell’s office for findings—including whether to let Diaz stay on at the department—soon. PubliCola has reached out to Harrell’s office for comment.
SPD chief Sue Rahr put both Diaz and Tompkins on administrative leave in late October, calling the situation “complex.” Diaz remains on leave, collecting a nearly $340,000 salary, for now.
The Office of Police Accountability launched an investigation into Diaz after several people filed complaints alleging that he and Tompkins had a romantic relationship and that he hired her as a subordinate without disclosing that relationship.
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Diaz filed a $10 million tort claim against the department shortly after he was put on leave. Faced with multiple lawsuits alleging he personally harassed and created a hostile work environment for women in the department, Diaz went on a right-wing radio talk show to announce that he is gay, suggesting that this meant he was unlikely to have harassed women or had a romantic relationship with a woman.
He also threatened PubliCola with a lawsuit for reporting on his radio appearance and noting the existence of the rumors about Tompkins, whom Rahr named in her department-wide email announcing her decision to put Diaz and Tompkins on leave. Diaz is married to a woman.
Rumors about Diaz and Tompkins had been swirling for months when KUOW first reported on the allegations publicly, without naming Tompkins. Less than a day after KUOW’s initial report, Diaz fired an employee he accused of inventing the rumor, and the department circulated an internal HR investigation alleging that the employee confessed that he had fabricated the rumor.
Several media outlets, including the Stranger (twice), reported that the employee, Durand Dace, had “admitted to inventing” the rumor. Subsequently, he told KUOW the department made him the “fall guy” for a story that was circulating widely and that he did not invent. PubliCola has reached out to Dace and will update this post if we hear back.
This is a developing story.
Once more I would like to remind you that “immunity” and “impunity” only differ by one letter.
The fact that officers think they can get away with hiring their secret lovers or lying on their timesheets speaks volumes about the culture of the SPD. It makes one think that the organised corruption of yore in the department has just given way to individualized corruption in which officers just turn a blind eye to each other’s freelance trespasses.