A Boise Police officer requested an engine crew from station #5 to respond to the area of 6th and Main where police were confronting an angry crowd after a stabbing at a bar. A GUARDIAN source told us, “He told the cops to go pound sand.” Deputy Fire Chief Dave Hanneman was a little more diplomatic when he said, “We don’t do that, so we said no.”

Police did unleash pepper spray on the angry crowd and marched in skirmish lines pushing the people west of Capitol Boulevard. The GUARDIAN has had reports of “heavy handed tactics” by police who shoved people around.

The daily paper quoted police spokeswoman Lynn Hightower who soft peddled the actions of the officer who requested the fire hoses for crowd control…She thought he was a sergeant or lieutenant.

“He was reaching for options. What is important to note is that it is not an option. It is not something that would have been used. It is way outdated,” said the police spokeswoman. She termed the situation as “desperate” and “scary” and then qualified the remark as TEMPORARILY desperate and scary.

We worry that ANY policeman of any rank would make an urgent call to the fire department without the authority of superiors who all claim they would never approve turning fire hoses on citizens.

If dousing human beings with fire hoses is NOT an option and would never be considered by cops, we hope police commanders are making it clear to the rest of the department that whoever called for firemen used BAD JUDGMENT and violated department chain of command by making a request that was beyond his pay grade.

In summary, if it were not for the good judgment of the Fire Department captain, the inappropriate action would have been taken and both police and fire brass would be defending the actions. No doubt MONEY MAGAZINE would have taken away our #8 ranking as well!!

It was no parade. They were watching 35 cops from four agencies squirting partyers with pepper spray following a violent stabbing incident at the Loft, a bar at 622 Idaho. Cops were scared (“felt threatened”) after the crowd failed to disperse taunted police who ordered them to leave the area.

Police Chief Mike Masterson is being placed in an unfair bind. He needs to maintain law and order in an area of concentrated partying and alcohol consumption. Friday night police initiated a “crackdown” and were forced to bring in outside agencies to assist the “bar team” which was created in September 2005. Apparently there are not enough Boise uniformed cops to keep the peace in downtown–evidenced by the outside troops who are routinely summoned to help.

The City recently amended–or is in the process of amending–an old ordinance which prohibits sale of alcohol on the sidewalk after sunset. It appears to the GUARDIAN there are two forces at work.

One is to sell more booze to make more money and attract more people downtown at night. The other force is charged with maintaining a safe place for citizens to enjoy their evenings. We hope both can reach a common goal, but when there are stabbings and murders it casts doubt on the issue.

The guy apparently wanted to show his stuff to children, but was too bashful or afraid of getting caught, so he just drove past unsuspecting kids and tossed naked photos of himself at the victims.

Alert witnesses provided license number and a (detailed) description of the alleged pervert. Police think they got their man since he matched the photos he was tossing out the window of his car.

No doubt the defense attorney will say, “Your honor, my client was so repulsed at these naked photos of himself he was compelled to toss them out the window of his car.”

He is charged with disseminating material harmful to minors, but watch for it to get reduced to littering.

Bradley G. Holmes is charged with a misdemeanor for allegedly “splitting invoices” for eight tractor tires. He has entered a not guilty plea.

City purchasing regulations require bids for items worth more than $1500. It is illegal to split the invoices to avoid the competitive bid law. The alleged purchase was made while an internal audit was being conducted into the farm finances. The auditor has quit and so far the city has not replaced him.

The Poop Farm has caused a big stink for Boise officials who ordered an audit last summer after reports in the GUARDIAN raised concerns about bidding practices and misuse of City owned property.

Similar concerns arose about a tool lending policy at the Boise Public Works Department. Under that policy employes were allowed to “check out” city owned tools and equipment for personal use.

That practice was abruptly curtailed after reports from GUARDIAN readers confirmed it was an official policy.

The GUARDIAN has been deluged with information about all sorts of allegations the city has allowed to go unchecked over the years at the Twenty Mile South biosolids site near Kuna since we first broke the story last June.

Contrary to claims from city media “spinsters” that posting set off a massive internal audit headed by Steve Rehn–the guy the council hired to guard against fraud after the Brent Coles fiasco.

Rehn raised so many red flags it looked like a parade in Communist China. So far, felony charges have been filed against the farm manager and another worker has been subject of personnel action. He is no longer on the job.

Rehn’s departure should be of concern to anyone looking for accountability within city government. While he did an adequate job in the auditing process, we have yet to learn if there is anyone assigned OVERALL responsibility for the situation at the Poop Farm. SOMEONE should be coordinating the criminal, human resources, legal, and financial auditing functions.

The problems uncovered there reveal a system that is in need of more corrective action than just a single criminal charge and firing. GUARDIAN sources–whom we suspect are current and former employees–tell us they followed protocol to alert their supervisors to the financial wrongdoings “for years, but nothing was done.

A clear understanding of what was done, how it was done, and why it was undetected is important. We have been advised of a dual set of books, questionable crop yields, alleged offsite construction using city-purchased material, and insider lease agreements–none of which seem to be in the audit report.

No way to tell if the city is even investigating any of the above since their audit is secret (part of a criminal investigation) and the auditor is leaving.

Skinner has been charged with felony misuse of public funds.

How Dr. Zuzel was able to get Dan Hawkins to take therapy in the form of a coaching job in Colorado on the day the Poop connected with the proverbial fan is amazing. Attention was diverted to the important things in Boise–winning coaches instead of city hall scandals. It was like everyone was on antidepressants.

The City obviously provided video to the TV stations and spoon fed a sugary placebo of “We jumped on it and the system works,” which was regurgitated by all the mainstreamers.

We have been assured by inside sources that only after the GUARDIAN began posting the facts did the city launch their audit and the diagnosis of irregulaties spread like bird flu as they went along.

The issue at the Poop Farm goes way beyond the obvious criminal activity. The real problem is the alleged offenses were allowed to happen without oversight or audit. A single arrest is like taking cold pills–you feel better, but the illness is still there. City officials would be better served to see this scandal as a warning sign that their fiscal hygiene has allowed financial irregularities to exist.

We have been told there are new diagnostic procedures being enacted in purchasing as a result of the investigation and audit–which the GUARDIAN applauds.

We have also heard stories of employees at the Poop Farm renting vehicles and equipment from themselves on behalf of the city. Sort of like doctors sending you for therapy at a facility they happen to own. Bad medicine any way you look at it.

The mayor told us he, “didn’t expect any more charges,” but the audit report is being withheld because others say more criminal charges may be forthcoming. Not good to mix prescriptions without talking to your spin doctor first!

We haven’t heard anything from city hall sources, but expect there will be some “spankings” administered in days and weeks to come to those who allowed these crimes and irregularities to happen.

Take a couple aspirin, get some sleep and call me in the morning.

Boise City Hall was rocked by scandal Wednesday when it was revealed that felony charges have been filed against the former manager of Boise’s Twenty Mile south “Poop Farm.”

David C. Skinner is charged with “misuse of public funds.” The complaint filed in 4th District Court alleges that “without authority of law” he appropriated livestock supplies and or money for his own use. Skinner resigned last month during the audit and criminal investigation. A warrant for his arrest has been issued.

The investigation and subsequent financial audit came after confidential informants provided the GUARDIAN with evidence which was published and turned over to city officials. It was difficult to get the attention of the folks at City Hall who characterized the situation as being a “personality conflict” and a “personnel issue.”

One councilor even berated us for posting “false information” and said we were simply “anti-government.” Today we talked to Councilor Elaine Clegg who explained she was aware of the Poop Farm situation and felt information that was “unvarified” by official sources should not be made public. GUARDIAN decided to go with it for better or worse, relying on confidential sources.

The GUARDIAN was aware of the purchase of livestock supplies for the Poop Farm, but the city has no cattle and never did have any! This information was published in June and we believe it was a factor in prompting Councilor Vern Bisterfeldt to demand an internal audit of the practices of the Public Works Department.

One item not mentioned in the criminal charges, but sure to be subject of internal discussions was the purchase of two tractors for $143,000 without Council knowledge or approval.
They were carried on the books as “rental equipment” and it was never uncovered until the GUARDIAN and its sources made it known. State law requires bids for anything over $25,000, but that was never done. The purchasing department didn’t even have a copy of the contract with a Nampa implement dealer they paid monthly for several years.

The city has officially been mum all summer and fall, but GUARDIAN sources tell us there has been a flurry of activity in Public Works, Purchasing and Human Resources over the problems at the Poop Farm. The audit was conducted by the internal audit office at the direction of the City Council and Boise Police detectives handled the criminal investigation.

The problems at the Poop Farm are not limited to the 4,000 acre facility where “biosolid waste” is deposited from the sewer plant.

The GUARDIAN uncovered a pattern of illegal spending, lack of oversight, lack of accountability–financial or otherwise, and an almost total reliance on department head’s judgment by the City Council. Complaints by honest City employees were either ignored or down played.

Almost every department in city hall is touched by this latest scandal. To their credit we hear that City purchasing practices are being tightened and auditors and purchasing people are now looking for split invoices, less than full signatures and other “red flags.”

This is the biggest scandal to hit the City since Dave Bieter became mayor with promises of accountability, ethics, and transparency in government… promises Bieter contends he has kept with the culmination of the investigation. He feels “the system worked,” and admitted some changes are being procedural changes are being instituted as a result of the audit.

Bieter told the GUARDIAN, “I believe we got to the bottom of it and it is relatively contained.” He added the arrest warrant should send a message that will put a chill on other thoughts of misuses of city funds and property.

Finally, the Mayor said he doesn’t anticipate further charges being filed, he and the Council have a range of options from “dismissal to administrative personnel actions,” that can still be used if needed.

No word if the resignation stems from investigations and a major audit surrounding finance and management practices within the Boise Public Works Department and the Twenty Mile South Farm.

We don’t know those who gave us info back in May, but based on the facts they offered and inside knowledge they had, it was obvious the allegations had foundation and were worthy of further investigation. (see note at bottom for background)

When the GUARDIAN made attempts to share its findings with Councilors one didn’t want to be bothered at 9 p.m. with the info. Another told us we were “irresponsible, had faulty information, did nothing but try to turn the people against government.” In short, she was pissed and ended the call saying she didn’t have time to talk about it.

We suspect our “Deep throat sources” are past or present city workers–part of a huge majority of fine people who want to have an honest staff and competent leaders. They were met with the same attitude and inaction when they reported problems to superiors.

Only one City Councilor took action on the information we had in hand. We had documents regarding illegal purchase of $143,000 worth of tractors, converting public property to personal use, purchase of cattle related items when the city owned NO CATTLE, and a host of purchasing policy violations.

THAT Councilor demanded an internal audit. Thirty days later the auditor asked for more time and ended up taking 90 days to come back with the results–some of which we assume will be made public soon.

At the October 11 meeting, City Councilors were briefed by the City Attorney and presented with information in a secret executive session–a proper forum for such important legal and personnel matters. This case involves potential felony crimes and brings into question the abilities of some top city managers.

Auditors, detectives, prosecutors, and attorneys have been toiling for untold hours during the past four months on this case. The GUARDIAN is well aware the statute of limitations will preclude prosecution on some incidents, but other acts have been ongoing MONTHLY.

Our problem is not alleged irregularities themselves, but the fact they were apparently being covered up and tolerated by those in charge. City officials repeatedly said there was a, “personnel problem” and that at least two employes had a , “personality conflict.” That is NOT what we gleaned from the evidence.

We hope this latest City scandal gets the attention of the voting public who will strenuously demand accountability in government. City fathers–and mothers–need to rely on the voices of someone other than department heads and managers.

Military experts will tell you it is a wise commander who listens to his sergeants and privates rather than rely solely on officers for information. Boise’s mayor and council would do well to heed that old axiom.

Ed note: The GUARDIAN ran a series of stories last May 31 through June 13 with revelations about (financial) IRREGULARITIES at the Boise “Bio Solid Waste Facility” in the desert near Kuna. Check the monthly archive link at the right of this page for those dates.

The WEEKLY ran a piece called “Taxing The Public Trust” which was pretty much a rehash of Yzaguirre’s financial problems with the Idaho Tax Commission, Fish & Game and Lottery Commission in connection with his troubled convenience store, “Justos” in Eagle.

He was mayor of Eagle at the time of the alleged offenses and in a nutshell he admitted diverting taxes and fees owed to those state agencies in an attempt to keep his business afloat. Liens were filed on his property and he made arrangements to repay the agencies following the sale of the store and refinancing his home.

He was subsequently elected and then reelected to the Ada Commission post despite pleas from some quarters–including an editorial in the IDAHO STATESMAN–for his resignation.

Which brings us to the present. The news and underlying complaint from Ullman and crew is the lack of prosecution by Ada County Prosecutor Greg Bower–at any point over the past three years. She took her complaint to the Ada sheriff who has an obvious conflict of interest as well as Bower. Both depend on budget approval from the commissioners and Bower is their legal counsel.

She ended up with an investigator from the Idaho State Police and the results will go to the Gem County prosecutor for review and a decision regarding prosecution.

One item stands out as being particularly damning for Yzaguirre if true. According to the WEEKLY, during the time-frame in which Yzaguirre was failing to pay the state, public records show he donated a total of $918 to various political organizations and election campaigns, including his own run for office and that of Gov. Dirk Kempthorne.

The GUARDIAN wonders why all parties have waited so long to file complaints, investigate, and prosecute–or not prosecute. We figure the bottomline will be a decision that agencies involved chose to handle the financial matters through civil procedures in an effort to get the state’s money and since the money has been recovered they will ignore any crimes which may or may not have been committed.

We will keep you posted regardless of the results.

The courts will handle the criminal side of the case, but KIVI Channel 6 ran a story recently which was particularly disturbing. They had a mother on air whose daughter apparently was the focus of attention from the same cop. She claims he had an obvious interest in her daughter and eventually used his badge in an attempt to lure the girl into a “ride along.”

Mom said no to the ride, filed a complaint with the BPD, and received a letter from Chief Mike Masterson confirming the officer’s actions were indeed inappropriate and he promised to take care of the situation. Good marks to Masterson. And especially good marks for Mom to see there was a problem.

All this was BEFORE the alleged criminal assault took place.

To put it in perspective: Had the same circumstances occurred in school, the administration would have been hard pressed to place a teacher alone with 17 year old girls after admitting he had misbehaved previously.

The BPD must answer to the public why they allowed a guy to have 17 year old girls alone in his car AFTER command staff–at least the chief–had already confirmed his behavior was inappropriate. Sounds like a classic failure to communicate.