Cleveland TN council to rate city manager Janice Casteel

Janice Casteel
Janice Casteel
photo Janice Casteel

CLEVELAND, Tenn. -- The Cleveland City Council has voted to evaluate the performance of City Manager Janice Casteel, and one council member says she needs to be put back in her former post as city finance officer.

The move came after Cleveland businessman Ben Moore asked the council Monday to remove Casteel from office, citing chaos and lack of leadership in the police department during her eight-year tenure as city manager.

Councilman Richard Banks made the motion to evaluate Casteel.

"I've had conversations with numerous people who are concerned about Janice Casteel's ability as it relates to making decisions concerning the leadership" of the police department," Banks said. "That has been confirmed by other council members who voted 7-0 [in March] to hire law enforcement consultant Larry Wallace."

Although Casteel has earned his respect, "I believe that she could better serve our citizens by attending full-time to matters involving financial issues of our great city," he said.

Banks said Moore and other taxpayers have voiced fears that Cleveland might be considered "an easy target" for crime in light of leadership problems in the police department that it's the city manager's job to handle.

Under Casteel, the police department has been riven by sex scandals and the department and city are battling lawsuits ranging from a woman claiming civil damages for sex assault by a former police officer to claims of retaliation and improper termination. At the same time, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation figures show Cleveland's crime rate is above average for the state.

The vote was 6-1. Only Councilman Charlie McKenzie voted no.

"An evaluation system is a good way to communicate with Janice," City Councilman Bill Estes said. "Whether it's anonymous or not, it's just a good way to give feedback."

Wallace, a 40-year law enforcement veteran and former director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, was asked to study and make recommendations on the police department's policies, procedures and organizational structure after a scandal involving one-day chief Dennis Maddux in early March.

An internal investigation determined that Maddux, a 28-year department veteran, lied to investigators over whether he was having an affair with another officer's wife.

Interim Chief Mark Gibson recommended that Maddux be fired, stating "his actions embarrassed the city of Cleveland and have destroyed the faith the men and women of our department have in their administration."

Maddux retired instead. Two other officers, including the one whose wife Maddux was seeing, were reassigned.

Casteel was appointed city manager in July 2008. Before that, she served a few months as the assistant city manager and for several years as the city clerk and financial director.

A Municipal Technical Advisory Service evaluation form will be presented to the council for its June 22 meeting for establishing a possible performance-measuring tool for Casteel, said Assistant City Manager Melinda Carroll.

"The city manager welcomes the evaluation," said Carroll, stating that the council has never conducted a performance evaluation for Casteel.

Paul Leach is based in Cleveland. Email him at paul.leach.press@gmail.com.

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