Turlock to consider hiring interim police chief, bringing retired employee back again
The Turlock City Council on Tuesday is scheduled to consider hiring Gary Hampton as interim police chief, potentially bringing the recent acting city manager back to leadership.
City staff’s recommendation to hire Hampton, a retiree of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, comes amid a CalPERS review of a complaint he worked past his allowed hours.
The retirement system received an ethics complaint about Hampton in late June, CalPERS spokesperson Amy Morgan said in an email, and is reviewing the allegations. The Bee filed a public records request for the complaint last month, but has not received a copy as of Monday. Complaint reviews typically take 90 days, Morgan said, putting the estimated completion date around the end of September.
No rules prevent retirees from working while CalPERS reviews complaints, Morgan added. If a review determines a retiree employment violated CalPERS regulations, the employee must reimburse the system for all pension payments received during unlawful employment. The involved employer likewise must pay contributions to the retirement system.
CalPERS notified the city of a report through its ethics hotline that Hampton worked past the maximum retiree working hours for the fiscal year, Interim City Manager Sarah Eddy said in an email. The city told the retirement system he did not break the 960 hour limit, which reset July 1, Eddy said. Hampton left the acting city manager position in late May because of the limit, he told The Bee in a May 22 article.
“In my opinion, it would be quite a stretch to call a question about an annual hours limitation an ‘ethics complaint,’” Eddy said in an email. “In any case, it has had no effect on my desire to have Mr. Hampton serve as our interim police chief because of his deep experience, high standards and familiarity with our department.”
Hampton did not return calls or texts requesting comment on Monday. If the council approves hiring Hampton, his employment will end when the city hires a permanent police chief, per the agenda report. The council in June authorized paying a recruitment firm $100,000 to search for a police chief, as well as four other top positions, including a city manager.
Two police captains have taken turns serving as interim chief since Nino Amirfar retired in October 2020. Capt. Miguel Pacheco led the department through the end of January and Steven Williams has worked as interim chief since then.
Turlock admin explains recommendation
Eddy made the decision to recommend hiring Hampton as interim police chief, Mayor Amy Bublak said in a text to The Bee. Asking Hampton to fill the position on a temporary basis helps ensure everyone interested in applying for the permanent job has an equal opportunity, Eddy said. The human resources manager prior to her current appointment, Eddy has worked in human resources for most of her 32-year career with the city.
“When a person serving in the interim position also applies for the permanent job, it gives an unfair advantage to one applicant over all the others,” Eddy said in an email. “This results in decreasing the number of applicants for these important positions which is a disservice to our taxpayers, residents, and city employees.”
Eddy commended the police captains who served as interim chiefs, adding she expects many employees who served interim positions to apply for the city’s several open department head jobs. Williams previously told The Bee he is interested in applying for police chief on a permanent basis.
Hampton stands to earn the highest pay rate on Turlock’s salary schedule for the position, per the agenda report. The city will pay him about $90 per hour if the council approves the appointment as recommended. Eddy said she would not insult Hampton by offering a lower salary, adding the council recently lowered the pay scales for the position.
The council appointed Hampton as acting city manager on Jan. 12, after it put former City Manager Toby Wells on investigative leave. Hampton previously served as Turlock police chief and interim city manager between 2006 and 2011. He worked as Tracy’s police chief and city administrator before returning to Turlock as city manager from April 2016 to July 2017.
Hampton also volunteered as a reserve officer for the Turlock Police Department from April 2019 to October 2020. In the unpaid position, he worked for the chief’s office and did consulting work on department planning and vision, Sgt. Michael Parmley told The Bee in a Jan. 16 article.
The council is set to consider hiring Hampton during its regular meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The public can attend in person or join via Zoom.
This story was originally published August 10, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
