A
Jackson police officer has been suspended pending investigation of a complaint
that he repeatedly parked his patrol car in a cemetery while off duty. A
supervisor found the officer there talking with a woman in her car, officials
said on Friday.
Jackson
police officer Ken Stone has been suspended for 10 days, pending investigation
of the complaint filed against him. He could not be reached for comment.
Capt.
Thom Corley with the police department said Stone was suspended after the
department received complaints from people who live in the area of Ridgecrest
Cemetery that a marked police unit was repeatedly seen in the cemetery for a
period of time and that the residents were concerned.
“They
provided us with the vehicle number. And a captain went out there to check up
on it,” Corley said.
“Ken
Stone was off duty when located, but he was in uniform in a marked vehicle,”
Corley said. “The captain drafted a statement of charges including violation of
policy and violation of conduct.”
Stone
is charged with violating a department policy in regards to vehicles that are
signed over to employees who have take-home privileges.
“With
take-home vehicles, you are to drive back and forth to work and that’s all,”
Corley said.
The
car had been spotted in the cemetery for at least a couple of weeks. The
captain discovered the incident on April 11, Corley said.
Chief
Gill Kendrick held a hearing on those departmental charges Monday and
administered the 10-day suspension Thursday, Corley said. Stone’s vehicle
privileges are restricted for at least 90 days.
When
the captain located the marked white Chevy Impala in the cemetery, it was
empty, Corley said. Stone was in another car with a woman who is not an
employee of the police department, he said. “They were in her private vehicle
talking,” he said.
Stone, who has been with the department
almost 15 years, is assigned to the traffic division.