By Mark Hansel
NKyTribune managing editor
The Covington Police Department remains off limits to Kenton County Commonwealth Attorney Rob Sanders and his staff — unless they have a police escort.
Covington Police Department Assistant Chief of Police Brian Steffen confirmed that order 16-10, issued June 23, remains in effect.
The order, referencing “building integrity,” was issued by Covington Police Chief Bryan Carter and states:
“Effective Immediately, no member of the Kenton County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office is allowed in Police Headquarters without a police escort.”
In a statement, Sanders downplayed the significance of the order.
“No police officers have ever had keys to my office, which also has restricted access, and I don’t have or need keys to any police departments,” Sanders said. “This is a non-issue and has no effect on our relationship with the hundreds of detectives and officers with whom we work closely on a daily basis to keep Kenton County safe.”
In previous statements to the media, Covington city officials indicated a lack of trust had developed between the Police Department and the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office.
It’s not clear what trust issues officials were referring to, but there was no indication of similar concerns during the tenure of former Police Chief Spike Jones, who is now Kenton County Police Chief.
Steffen declined to elaborate on those comments and referred all questions to the City’s Legal Department, which said it had no new information to share.
In July, Sanders was asked to return handguns that had been issued to his office by the Covington Police Department in 2012 and 2013. Sanders returned all but one of the guns, which he reported stolen from his residence on or about July 12.
The guns had been seized during criminal investigations.
In March, the U.S. Department of Justice dropped Sanders’ office from the national seizure and asset forfeiture program following a compliance review.
The Department of Justice determined the Kenton County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office failed to submit annual certifications for the previous three fiscal years as required.
Specific internal control deficiencies noted by the DOJ include:
* Expenditures were not reported in the State’s Schedule of Expenditures of Federal Awards
* Equitable Sharing Agreement and Certification (ESAC) forms were not submitted
* No asset tracking system was maintained for inventory of property purchased with Program funds (i.e. firearms, vehicles);
* Program funds were not maintained with the Commonwealth of Kentucky as required and therefore State procurement policies were not followed
* Program funds were commingled along with non-Program funds;
* No general ledger or accounting records were maintained to track Program funds
* No approval policies in place to ensure segregation of duties
* Expenditures of program funds were not in accordance with the Guide and impermissible.
Sanders was ordered to send the USDOJ a check for $68,382.39, which he did.
Sanders issued this statement regarding the removal of the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office from the program:
“While this review found my office’s compliance with some of the program’s many guidelines to be insufficient, it did not find that any monies or other assets were missing or misappropriated. My office sent the balance of funds in my asset forfeiture account to the Department of Justice to resolve this matter and my office no longer participates in this controversial program.”
Sanders has served as the Kenton County Commonwealth Attorney since 2007.
Contact Mark Hansel at mark.hansel@nkytrib.com