Detroit Mayor Dave Bing announced on Friday that he would be leading the investigation into the conduct of Police Chief Ralph Godbee Jr., according to the Detroit Free Press and other media outlets. Godbee is accused of having an affair with Internal Affairs Officer Angelica Robinson.
The announcement that the mayor would lead the investigation came just one day after a citizen board charged with overseeing the city's police department had requested clarification as to who would take charge of it, according to the Detroit News . Bing was the one who appointed Godbee in 2010, after his predecessor, Warren Evans, was forced to resign, also over a sex scandal involving a subordinate.
Here are some of the key details to emerge regarding the investigation into Godbee's conduct and Bing's reaction to it.
* Rumors have circulated since Godbee returned to the city on Wednesday from a police chiefs conference in San Diego that he plans to step down, but as of Friday, no such announcement had been made.
* Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder was asked for his input on the scandal shortly after Godbee's return to Detroit on Wednesday. Snyder answered that the investigation does not involve the state directly, but is a "Detroit issue,"as quoted by MLive.
* Even so, Snyder did also say that the scandal was "a concern" given the city's financial stability agreement with the state and its ongoing upheaval as it struggles to regain some measure of fiscal and political stability.
* Godbee himself was put on a 30-day paid suspension pending the results of the investigation into his involvement with Robinson.
* Bing had reportedly previously told the Human Resources Department of the Detroit Police to handle the matter, but said in his statement on Friday that given that Godbee is a mayoral appointee, he has now decided to conduct what he called an "independent investigation to determine the validity of any allegations of personal misconduct that violate my standards for appointees," as quoted by the Detroit Free Press.
* The Associated Press had pointed out on Wednesday that if Bing ends up firing Godbee for misconduct, it will be the city's fifth police chief in just the last four years.
* City Council Member Kwame Kenyatta criticized Bing for the back-to-back sex scandals involving two of the city's police chiefs, saying that it was an indication that the mayor either "chooses the wrong people or doesn't know how to choose the right people," as quoted by the Associated Press.
* Bing told the media on Friday that he would have a further announcement regarding the investigation this coming Monday.
Vanessa Evans is a musician and freelance writer based in Michigan, with a lifelong interest in politics and public issues.
