Close to a year after the vehicle carrying Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb was involved in a crash in Downtown Cleveland, the police officer driving Bibb is facing discipline.
The Civilian Police Review Board decided at its meeting Tuesday that Bibb’s driver, Demetrius Woods, violated four separate policies.
The board recommended discipline for turning on emergency lights and running a red light when there was no emergency, failing to wear both a body camera and body armor and for waiting two months to file a report.
On June 13, 2024, Woods was bringing Bibb to City Hall. He turned on his emergency lights and ran a red light at the corner of Superior Avenue and East 12th Street.
As the city-owned black SUV was going through the intersection, a minivan was going through the green light on East 12th Street and collided with the mayor’s vehicle.
The Office of Professional Standards, which investigates civilian complaints against Cleveland police officers and presents its findings to the Civilian Police Review Board for a vote on whether to recommend discipline, conducted two investigations into the incident.
OPS Investigator Art Bowker presented the second investigation to the board during its meeting this week and said Woods violated the policy on emergency driving because there was no emergency when he ran that red light.
The officer and his union representatives claimed officers turn on their emergency lights and run red lights “all the time, conducting business” and gave the example of “escorting” visiting dignitaries like presidents or celebrities, said Bowker.
“When you’re escorting someone, that’s preapproved. There’s a route, there’s communication, officers stop intersections and allow those vehicles to go through,” said Bowker, adding that the policy is clear – you’re only allowed to do what Woods did under certain circumstances, primarily when there’s an emergency.
The officer also defended the two equipment policy violations – for not wearing a body camera or body armor on duty – saying that that’s how the mayoral protection duty has always done things, according to Bowker.
Officers who are undercover or in plainclothes don’t have to wear a body camera or body armor if they receive formal approval from a supervisor, but Woods never sought that approval.
“I think this is a case where he’d been in that position for a length of time, he was comfortable and he was confusing past practice for what is authorized,” said Bowker.
Board member Brandon Brown voted in favor of discipline and said there’s a bigger issue that should be addressed and asked to make a referral to the Community Police Commission for follow up.
“The culture of the department, being kind of implicitly approving of his actions, I think is one that we should not gloss over,” Brown said.
The review board also recommended discipline for Woods’ failure to file a required report on the crash until two months after the incident.
This was the second investigation by OPS into the mayor’s crash. The first was led by the former head of OPS, Marcus Perez, who has since left the agency.
In his November presentation to the board, Perez alleged that Woods also made false statements about the crash and provided no evidence of a meeting at City Hall, allegations that could have led to much more serious discipline up to termination.
The review board did not vote on Perez’s allegations and instead referred it back to the police department’s internal affairs unit for an investigation.
According to Bowker, Perez’s allegations were unfounded and were made without speaking to Woods.
“The main point - bringing the allegation that the officer was making false statements and the violation of his integrity - that I would not have even raised,” said Bowker, who did interview Woods during his investigation. “And he provided explanations that clearly reflected those allegations of making false statements were overstated and should not have been raised.”
Internal affairs came to the same conclusions in their investigation, said Bowker.
Chief Annie Todd will hear the case next and issue discipline.
