Whitehall police chief justifies officer termination

View a previous report on the officer termination in the video player above.

WHITEHALL, Ohio (WCMH) – The Whitehall police chief responded to claims that an officer was terminated unfairly, revealing new details Monday in the internal investigation that removed a union representative from his position.

Whitehall Public Safety Director Van Gregg fired Officer Enrique Ortega last Friday, prompting outrage from the Fraternal Order of Police. In a news release, FOP alleged Ortega was discriminated against after conducting a union survey of Whitehall police officers’ working conditions and mental health. 

According to a news release from the Whitehall Division of Police, the termination followed an internal investigation of Ortega that allegedly found he threatened his supervisor and repeatedly behaved unprofessionally. Among the allegations detailed in the release, Chief Mike Crispen accused Ortega of unsafe acts with weapons, making negative comments to the public about the department and a “substantiated complaint involving racial profiling.” 

The news release also claimed Ortega said if the city considered him a poor employee, then he “planned to show them just how bad of an employee he could be.” 

Ortega was terminated after a pre-disciplinary hearing conducted by Gregg last Friday. FOP no. 9 president Brian Steel said Friday’s hearing lasted only 19 minutes. Crispen said Ortega was terminated because he would not correct his behavior. 

According to a lawsuit FOP filed against the police department last month, Ortega was relieved of duty shortly after presenting the working condition survey’s findings to the mayor of Whitehall.

Whitehall officers also held a vote of no confidence last month against Crispen, which Ortega was heavily involved in, according to FOP.