BURLINGTON — Burlington Police Department Deputy Chief Jan Wright is returning to work “immediately” after receiving an eight-day suspension for creating and operating anonymous social media accounts she used to defend the department and attack critics.
Wright revealed that she had used a Facebook account under the name “Lori Spicer” to Mayor Miro Weinberger in December, the day that former Police Chief Brandon del Pozo announced his resignation for operating an anonymous Twitter account that attacked local activist Charles Winkleman.
Wright had been named acting chief to replace del Pozo but was demoted back to deputy chief before being placed on administrative leave pending the investigation. The department announced the results of that investigation Monday; it also revealed that Wright had operated a Facebook account under the name “Abby Sykes.”
Before returning to unrestricted duty, Wright is required to participate in social media training provided by the city and in a restorative justice process with the Community Justice Center to rebuild the trust of those with whom she engaged in city business without revealing her identity.
Interim Chief Jen Morrison determined that Wright’s conduct was in violation of the city’s personnel policy that states city employees are expected to behave in a conscientious and professional manner.
“In all matters of discipline I seek to find a remedy that is fair but firm and will prevent the offending behavior from reoccurring,” Morrison said in the statement. “In this case we have an opportunity to utilize restorative practices that the city is so well known for to rebuild trust with important stakeholders and move beyond this incident to best serve the citizens of Burlington.”
Wright accepted responsibility for her actions and apologized for her behavior in a written statement included in the release.
“I am deeply embarrassed by my behavior,” she said. “I look forward to returning to work and taking the steps necessary to correct my behavior and to regain trust with those with whom it has been broken.”
At Monday’s City Council meeting, Councilor Max Tracy, P-Ward 2, said he felt Wright’s punishment was insufficient. He said he believed the punishment points to the need for increased citizen oversight of the department.
“I think the eight-day suspension was completely inadequate to address the behavior and the harm that was caused by the deputy chief in this particular situation,” he said.
Councilor Jack Hanson, P-East District, said he was also concerned about the punishment and thoroughness of the investigation.
“I think all of this ties back to the need, as Councilor Tracy said, of greater mechanisms of oversight and accountability in these situations,” Hanson said.
Weinberger said as the city discusses the role of civilians in police oversight, it should also review the role of elected public officials in department oversight.
The police commission did review the matter and provide input to Morrison on discipline, the mayor said. Weinberger said there was general agreement in support of the decision from the commission, though it was not unanimous.
In a letter to Wright, Morrison wrote that Wright’s behavior was not consistent with the department’s expectations.
“Going forward, I expect your behavior to not only comport with our values, but also to demonstrate the highest level of professionalism,” she said. “Any further conduct reflecting a lack of courtesy, respect, or good judgment will lead to immediate disciplinary action up to and including dismissal.”
Investigation finds activity on several platforms
Deanna Paluba, the director of human resources, conducted the investigation. Paluba wrote that the city did an extensive review of Wright’s social media activity but said that Wright “did not have the password” to access the “Abby Sykes” account and was locked out of the “Lori Spicer” account by Facebook when she was not able to provide identification to prove the identity of that account.
The investigation revealed that Wright, in addition to previously reported Facebook activity, had commented on the VTDigger website under the “Abby Sykes” name.
Wright criticized Councilors Max Tracy and Ali Dieng in the comments section under a June story about a special committee established to review policing policy. Under the name “Abby Sykes” she wrote that she found comments made by Tracy and Dieng to be “inappropriate and careless.”
“As stewards and representatives of the City of Burlington, you have failed,” she wrote. “You have publicly convicted an officer of murder when he has not had due process. You don’t even know all the facts and have refused to learn any facts. Your knee jerk reaction will end up hurting the city, the taxpayer, the officer involved and I hope your chances of serving this city after your next election. I’d like to believe it’s because you are naive to how parts of the city, like basic human resources and labor laws, work. Shame on you.”
Weinberger said at Monday’s meeting he was “particularly troubled” by Wright’s comments about city councilors.
The other comment on VTDigger was on a story about the use of pepper spray on a 6-year-old by Burlington police.
Under the “Lori Spicer” name on Facebook, Wright wrote that Winkleman was “obsessed” with del Pozo.
“You’re obsessed with Chief del Pozo. You can’t get enough of him. He definitely lives rent free in your head. Seek help,” she wrote.
She also sent Councilor Perri Freeman, P-Central District, a Facebook friend request in May 2019. Freeman responded with a message that said: “HI who it [sic] this?”
“Lori Spicer” responded: “Lori-hello! Interested in following your thoughts as a councilor. If you don’t post and this is a personal account, it’s okay. No problem.”
Freeman responded by writing “Oh I see! Is there a good number for you that I can call?”
“Spicer” responded, “No calls, please.”
Overall, the investigation determined that there was “no indication” that Wright engaged in a significant number of online interactions under the anonymous handles.
“While because the technical limitations prevented complete review of her Facebook activity, the portion of the Spicer activity log that was viewed do not suggest extensive additional activity,” the investigation stated.
The city’s investigation also considered if Wright’s requests to “friend” of “follow” people was a way to monitor left-wing political activists.
“There was no evidence to suggest that DC Wright’s posts, likes or connections established any discernible pattern of targeting any political party or any particular political cause,” the investigation states.
But the posts did “raise concerns” because Wright’s posts were derogatory or personally attacking in nature, the investigation found.
“It is not appropriate for command staff of the Burlington Police Department to attempt to demean members of the public who are expressing their opinions online with derogatory and personally-framed comments,” the investigation states.
Wright also used anonymous handles on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest, the investigation states.
Wright told investigators that she believed the primary reason for del Pozo’s discipline was being dishonest when approached by a reporter, not creating the social media account itself.
She also said she believed that del Pozo had told Weinberger about Wright’s anonymous account.
“At best, her failure to disclose represents a negligent lapse in judgement and at worst, an attempt to cover her activities in the belief that her online behavior would not be discovered,” the investigation states. “Further, it is difficult to believe that a command-level officer would not know that creating a fake account through which to make disparaging, personalized comments towards individuals about police department business was improper.”
