Misconduct and Subsequent Demotion

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Bill Beth of the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department was demoted two ranks – from third-in-charge Captain, to Sergeant as we told you last month. Beth is the younger cousin of Sheriff David Beth. We are told there were 26 charges including an issue with unauthorized comp time being issued and insubordination. A spokesman for the Sheriff told us the Sheriff didn’t handle the investigation. The county HR department hired an outside law firm to handle the investigation as it was a conflict to have the Sheriff investigate someone who helps stuff the turkey at Thanksgiving. No one knows the exact details why Chief Deputy Marc Levin demoted Beth, and we may never know.

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Appeal and Hearing

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Beth used his option under the ordinance to appeal his demotion to the County Board’s Finance and administration committee. Tonight the hearing was scheduled. Last Friday Beth’s attorney sent a letter to the County advising them that Beth was in the process of filing a lawsuit in Kenosha Circuit Court to ask a Judge to seal the records of Beth’s discipline from the taxpayers. This was pointed out to the committee – if Beth was successful in court and the committee held this hearing in secret, the tax-payers would never know exactly what Beth did to warrant such severe discipline. The democrats on the committee, which make up the majority, voted to hold the meeting in secret anyhow. The board’s chairman, Terry Rose, was the only elected official to vote in favor of holding the meeting in public. The six pictured below voted “yes” to close the meeting with little discussion.

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Access to Records of Hearing

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The County’s lawyer Joseph Cardamone, promised that the transcripts of the meeting would be made available…eventually. Who decides when? We don’t know. The problem with transparency here, is the fact that the County charges $1.25 per page for transcripts and a hearing of this length could easily exceed $2,000. Which tax-payer would pay that to see how the Sheriff’s department operates? Why should an interested citizen be required to pay that kind of money?

Tomorrow (June 3) is day two of the hearings and there is a third day scheduled.

Opinion

Why does Sergeant Bill Beth want all of the records of his demotion hidden from the public? If he is innocent of these charges, he should let the light in and show the world he is innocent. Let the tax-payers see the facts. These six members of the County board that voted to close the hearing were all endorsed by Sheriff David Beth at one point or another. Is the Sheriff lobbying his friends on the committee to clear his cousin of wrong-doing? Is Bill Beth hopeful that the politicians will bail him out of this? There is a better chance that his democrat buddies will help him behind closed doors. They won’t be held accountable. No one can disagree with them reinstating him as Captain- they don’t know the facts. How convenient. It looks very suspicious and shame on the members who voted to keep this hearing a secret. Nothing good ever comes from closed door secret meetings between slimy politicians.

Below are photos of other notable folks in attendance: