Oct. 06--Detroit Mayor Dave Bing plans to publicly address the sex scandal involving Police Chief Ralph Godbee Jr. on Monday.
Godbee is accused of having an affair with an Internal Affairs officer, whose gun was taken away after she became distraught and posted a photo of herself with a gun in her mouth on a social networking site. She was evaluated by a doctor and was cleared to return to work with her gun, a department spokeswoman said Friday.
Bing said he will lead the investigation into the chief's conduct, after a letter sent to the mayor's office Thursday by the Board of Police Commissioners said it felt the city charter granted the board the authority to conduct the investigation.
"I fully expect that the Board of Police Commissioners will execute their duties as outlined in the Detroit City Charter," Bing said in a statement Friday. "However, due to the fact that Chief Ralph L. Godbee Jr. is a mayoral appointee, I must conduct my own independent investigation to determine the validity of any allegations of personal misconduct that violate my standards for appointees."
Bing previously said he had directed the Human Resources Department to handle the investigation.
Godbee -- whom Bing suspended Tuesday for 30 days -- is accused of having an affair with Officer Angelica Robinson. The officer's attorney, David Robinson, told the Free Press that his client and the chief had a relationship for "many months."
News reports have indicated Angelica Robinson became upset after Godbee went to the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference in San Diego with another woman. On Tuesday, Godbee and a woman were booked in a room at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront, according to the hotel.
But David Robinson, who did not return calls seeking comment Friday, previously said his client had tried to end the relationship with Godbee, but "he didn't like that."
Godbee returned from the conference Wednesday. He declined to comment on the allegations or whether he would step down.
Detroit City Councilman Kwame Kenyatta said earlier this week that he expects the chief will resign.
On Thursday, police commissioners sent a letter to Bing that said human resources investigates sexual misconduct accusations, but they were not aware of any such complaints in the case.
According to the letter, "the news media has reported that Chief Godbee may have used department resources in violation of departmental policy to address an individual and personal matter. As the head of the Detroit Police Department, the board believes that it has the authority and mandate to conduct the investigation in this case, with that authority rooted in the clear and unambiguous language of the Detroit City Charter."
The Rev. Jerome Warfield, chairman of the board, said Friday that the commissioners accept the mayor's position but plan to address some issues and come up with policies "to make sure that this type of environment is not the norm."
Contact Gina Damron: 313-223-4526 or [email protected]. Staff writer Matt Helms contributed to this report.
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