Public speaker alleges historic police misconduct and urges independent oversight commission
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Summary
During public comment, Tommy Hart alleged that a now-deceased man had accused a Chesapeake police lieutenant of wrongdoing and urged the city to appoint an independent commission to oversee the police department; Hart described efforts to report alleged misconduct and said investigators had been obstructed.
Tommy Hart used the public-comment period on Oct. 14 to repeat allegations about an unsolved murder and alleged police misconduct. Hart said Clarence Trustee, who was robbed and later murdered at a Route 58 service station, complained previously about a Chesapeake police lieutenant and that Hart believes the lieutenant killed Trustee. Hart described long-standing efforts to get investigators to examine the case and said he had been disciplined in the past while trying to report the matter.
Hart asked that a commission be appointed to oversee the Chesapeake Police Department and said he had sought to escalate the matter to multiple authorities but that, in his view, the concerns remained unresolved. The council did not take formal action on the allegation during the meeting; the remarks were entered into the public record as part of the meeting's public-comment period.
The council chair interrupted at times to manage time and to call the next speaker; no council member endorsed the factual claims made by Hart during the meeting. City officials present did not announce any immediate investigative steps in response to Hart's comments during the meeting.