Teri Anderson
December 18, 2000, Monday
Copyright 2000 The Post Register
Idaho Falls Post Register
December 18, 2000, Monday
(IDAHO FALLS, Idaho ) -- Two former Idaho Falls Police officers will get their day before the Idaho Falls Civil Service Commission on Tuesday.
The three-member panel will investigate the firings of Michael Medema and Paul Jagosh at a 7 p.m. hearing in the Idaho Falls City Council Chamber. Idaho Falls Police Chief J. Kent Livsey fired the two men after they were accused of leaving the scene of an Oct. 23 accident.
The hearing will help the panel determine if the firings were religiously or politically motivated. It will also help the panel decide if Livsey was justified and his actions were in good faith.
Under city code, officers and firefighters have a right to have the three-member panel review their terminations.
The firings came the same day Idaho Falls Police Department officials said an internal investigation found that the two men violated department policy. Department officials have never publicly specified what policy the decision was based on.
Medema was a five-year veteran on the police force. Jagosh, who was named an officer of the month in February 1999, served three years in the patrol division.
Both officers were active members of the Idaho Falls chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police, a police union formed in 1997 but not recognized by the city. Medema was the union’s vice president at the time of his termination.
The accident happened on Oct. 23, about 10 minutes before midnight.
Medema and passenger Jagosh were turning onto Lindsay Boulevard from Broadway when Medema’s car struck a man’s truck. Jeffery Simons, of Blackfoot, then struck Medema’s car.
Police say Medema, Jagosh and Simons left the accident scene. They were found at Jagosh’s home, where they had consumed beer, according to police reports.
An accident report said it was unknown if Medema and Simons were intoxicated at the time of the accident.
Medema pleaded guilty in November to charges of inattentive driving and failing to report an accident to police. Jagosh was never charged with any crime.
If Jagosh and Medema disagree with the Civil Service Commission’s findings, they have 30 days to appeal to district court.
The City Council Chamber is located in the Idaho Falls Power Building, 140 S. Capital Ave.
Idaho Falls reporter Teri Anderson can be reached at 542-6750, or via e-mail at tanderson@idahonews.com.