Original Article 2 officers botched hundreds of cases Police records detail failures Monica Alonzo-Dunsmoor The Arizona Republic Jul. 25, 2005 12:00 AM An Arizona Republic review of police records has found that two Glendale police officers destroyed evidence in sexual-assault cases and failed to investigate hundreds of domestic-violence cases. As a result, the acting police chief said, prosecutions never took place in 191 cases, some involving reported sexual assaults against children and disabled people. "Some of the cases languished for over a year with no activity or investigation completed," an internal police document says. "This is unconscionable, as victims of domestic violence rely on the police to protect them. Failing to take investigative action subjects victims to further victimization." The cases date as far back as 1998, but police officials never disclosed the actions of then-Detectives Jeff Horsley and Kristian Grube to the victims or outside law enforcement agencies. Investigations of the officers' misconduct were handled internally. Both police officers were reassigned and suspended, but they are still working for the Glendale Police Department. Both declined requests for interviews. In a similar situation, another detective, Brad Moore, was fired in April for botching 158 domestic-violence cases. "I can't explain what happened back then," acting Police Chief Preston Becker said. "But we're talking about three employees over seven years. All the others do their jobs with dedication and follow-through as they should." Becker also said more layers of oversight have been added to prevent future cases from falling by the wayside. Supervisors will now monitor cases more closely. "This is a concern," he said. "Not only for me, but for my staff and for the city. I've assured them we will do everything we can to make sure this doesn't happen again." City officials say other detectives and their cases have been audited and that nothing similar has been found. Victim advocates, however, said that even a single such failure sends a disturbing message to those suffering abuse. Glendale police records reveal that neither Grube's nor Horsley's supervisors at the time were aware that the detectives were allowing cases to fall through the cracks. They also signed off on the incomplete reports, the records say. Only Grube's supervisors were disciplined. Ironically, according to investigative records, Moore was assigned to help Grube when police officials finally discovered all the reports Grube had failed to investigate. Heavy caseloads Horsley, an 11-year police veteran, worked in the sex-crimes division from December 1999 to July 2002 but did not properly investigate at least 59 sexual-assault cases, destroyed at least 30 videotapes that were evidence in those cases and closed out incomplete cases without explanations, according to an internal investigation. Grube, a 12-year veteran, was a domestic-violence detective but did not do any work on at least 174 cases assigned to him between July 1998 and April 2000. Records show that he also "misrepresented his progress on a case to the father of a child (molestation) victim." Grube was suspended without pay for eight days and Horsley for 20 days. Investigative reports indicate that the detectives were overwhelmed by their caseloads. Grube asked for help, but Horsley didn't. In a notice of suspension to Grube, then-Chief David Dobrotka wrote that the detective "had always demonstrated a very strong work ethic" and that his failure to pursue cases "was not due to laziness" but "because you were somewhat disorganized" and "because you cared too much, i.e. you worked so hard on some cases that others were neglected." In a note to his superiors, Horsley expressed his regret, saying, "I apologize not only for my actions but for the time that this administration has put into this investigation because of my reckless behavior." Horsley's and Grube's failings came to light when questions arose about cases that had been assigned to the detectives. When some records couldn't be found, police officials launched audits of their caseloads. An internal investigation of Grube took place in 2000, while that of Horsley began in December 2002. 'Damaging message' Experts who work with survivors of sexual assault say that these failures to investigate send a horrible message to the community. "If even one person doesn't have their case investigated, that's one person too many," said Michael Mandel, a spokesman for the Southern Arizona Center Against Sexual Assault. "We know that a lot of sexual assaults aren't reported, especially sexual assaults committed against people with disabilities. "The fact that someone came forward . . . is significant because very often, a care provider will turn the other cheek and not report their suspicions. So failure to investigate just sends a horrible and pretty damaging message." He said many people also believe that even if the crime against them is reported, nothing will happen or that they will go through an investigation, answering difficult questions and reliving the trauma, yet there will be no follow-up. Becker took over the chief's duties in April after Andrew Kirkland resigned amid allegations of sexual harassment and misuse of city resources. Becker said he ordered a deeper look at the cases Grube and Horsley should have worked, because he "wanted to make sure we've done all we could." The audit found that 38 of the 59 cases assigned to Horsley didn't go anywhere. Horsley destroyed evidence in some of those cases or waited as much as a year before following up on a reported crime, records say. In one case, the audit found, Horsley logged clothes and a sexual-assault kit as evidence. Just six days after the complaint, he authorized the release of the clothes to the victim and the destruction of the rape kit. The case remained open, but Horsley didn't pick up on it for another two years. He eventually submitted the case for prosecution without any evidence or documented interviews. Prosecutors turned down the case. Computer glitch It's unclear whether the outcome would have been different in those 38 cases had Horsley not dumped evidence in the trash at his home or if he had worked and properly documented the cases. Other detectives picked up the remaining 21 cases. As for Grube, police officials say that because of a computer glitch at that time, they couldn't prove that he knew of all 174 domestic-violence cases assigned to him. They can prove only that he was aware of his responsibility for investigating 43 of the cases. None of those was worked either. That glitch, however, did not affect the work of any other detectives, according to police officials. The one-year statute of limitation expired on 153 of Grube's cases, which were misdemeanors. Those could not be reworked, but 21 remaining cases were worked by other detectives.