Harvey commander suspended

Harvey commander
Thursday, September 14, 2006

By Lauren FitzPatrick
Staff writer

A notorious Harvey police commander has been stripped of his powers and suspended from the force, according to the police chief.
Cmdr. Darnell Keel had his badge, police gun and his take-home car taken away from him Tuesday evening at the behest of Police Chief Andrew Joshua, sources said Wednesday.

He will not collect a paycheck during further investigation, sources also said.

Joshua could not be reached for comment. His spokeswoman, Sandra Alvarado, denied the Daily Southtown access to Joshua at the police station Wednesday afternoon, saying he was "unavailable." Messages left with her and on her voice mail for the chief also went unanswered.

But investigators said Joshua stripped the commander of his police powers Tuesday and told him to hand over his gun, badge and take-home car.

"We're cracking down, cleaning house," said Sam Adam Jr., attorney for Mayor Eric J. Kellogg.

The message to any and all law enforcement officers coming through Harvey or vacationing in Harvey is that Kellogg realizes that accusations are being thrown about and need to be investigated.

"No one is accusing Keel of any wrongdoing," Adam continued. "But the very feeling of impropriety will be investigated to the fullest."

Late Tuesday night, Keel was seen outside the police station talking to Kellogg, his political sponsor for whom he had campaigned heavily in 2002 and 2003, witnesses said.

Kellogg rehired Keel after his 2003 mayoral victory, less than a year after the commander's resignation under federal scrutiny. Since then, he has remained in command with full salary despite a barrage of misconduct allegations.

But Keel supposedly became upset when the mayor told him he couldn't help him out, sources said.

Keel, who answered his telephone Wednesday, "J&K Construction," denied all the allegations.

"I can't talk to the media right now," he told a reporter Wednesday afternoon. Asked why, he replied, "There's nothing to talk about."

The veteran officer denied any ouster and said he still had his badge and gun before abruptly hanging up.

Called later on, Keel said he didn't know who was spreading "false information" and said he still had his "badge in his back pocket."

Keel has been named in numerous lawsuits filed against the city of Harvey.

He was accused of beating up a resident in June 2003 while off-duty and drunk. The plaintiff in that federal lawsuit also alleges that after he complained about Keel's behavior to prosecutors, Keel had a friend beat him up again.

Keel's employment with Harvey police has been cited specifically by other area chiefs as the reason they won't work with Harvey.

Keel rose to patrol officers from part-time animal control officer. He resigned in December 2002 before he could be fired for misconduct when his squad car camera caught him cursing at a group of female nightclub patrons and later striking a pedestrian with his car.

Keel also has been at the center of other internal probes since his return to the department. Most recently, Keel was one of two Harvey officers accused of harassing a Daily Southtown photographer at the scene of a traffic accident in June.

The incident prompted an apology from Kellogg, with his promise of a "thorough investigation."

Contributing: Kim Janssen, William Lee

Lauren FitzPatrick may be reached at lfitzpatrick@dailysouthtown.com or (708) 633-5964.