Four Columbus Police Department personnels have received disciplinary action over the arrest of Stormy Daniels.
Officers Whitney Lancaster and Steve Rosser were terminated this Thursday for mishandling Daniels’2018 arrest, according to officials. In addition, Sergeant Scott Soha received 120-hour suspension while Lieutenant Ron Kemmering was ordered a 240-hour suspension.
Lancaster, 57, had been with the force for 32 years and Rosser, 43, was a 19-year veteran,USA Todayreported. Meanwhile, Soha, 43, and Kimmerling, 51, have been in the division for 17 and 24 years respectively.
According to records from the Franklin County Municipal Court, Daniels was charged with three misdemeanor counts of illegally touching a patron. Hercharges were dismissedhours after her arrest.
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According to the report, Lancaster was also fired for failing to record her working hours correctly and not reporting an alleged drug deal in the bathroom, while Rosser was terminated for lying to internal affairs about the reason he was investigating the strip club,ABC News 11reported.
Kemmering was suspended for “ineffective supervision” that lead to the arrest, according to the outlet, and Soha was found to have “engaged in malfeasance and gross neglect of duty.”
Daniels sued Columbus police in January 2019 for civil rights violations, claiming officers had arrested her in retaliation for her lawsuit againstPresident Donald Trump. She settled for $450,000 later that year, according toCNN.
“Because of pending litigation as well as a concurrent federal criminal investigation, there will not be further information released at this time,” the Columbus Police Department said in a statement Friday.
Union representatives for Lancaster, Rosser, Soha and Kimmering did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment, though a spokesperson for Fraternal Order of Police toldNBC Newsthat both Lancaster and Rosser intend to challenge Pettus’ ruling.
source: people.com
