A Charleston Police Department captain remains on paid administrative leave as police and prosecutors continue to investigate allegations of sexual harassment.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A Charleston Police Department captain remains on paid administrative leave as police and prosecutors continue to investigate allegations of sexual harassment.
Capt. M.L. White is accused of harassing a woman and illegally checking license plate numbers of those associated with her, sources with knowledge of the investigation have told the Gazette.
"I don't like it," Police Chief Brent Webster said of White being on paid administrative leave. "But when you're talking about doing a thorough investigation and then protecting the agency, the officer and the public. That's what I have to look at."
The department has two separate investigations - one criminal and one internal - looking into White's actions. The criminal investigation is independent of and parallel to the internal investigation, Webster has said.
Asked about the investigation, Kanawha County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Plants said his office was still receiving information from police.
Plants said his office will likely meet with witnesses before making a decision.
"That takes a little more time," he said. "We want to make sure there's an independent investigation done. ... Just like all investigations, I'm going to review everything promptly - I mean weeks, not months."
Webster acknowledged that he has an interest in knowing whether the prosecutor's office plans to file charges against White. The more information he has before making his own decision on White's status with the department, the better, he said.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A Charleston Police Department captain remains on paid administrative leave as police and prosecutors continue to investigate allegations of sexual harassment.
Capt. M.L. White is accused of harassing a woman and illegally checking license plate numbers of those associated with her, sources with knowledge of the investigation have told the Gazette.
"I don't like it," Police Chief Brent Webster said of White being on paid administrative leave. "But when you're talking about doing a thorough investigation and then protecting the agency, the officer and the public. That's what I have to look at."
The department has two separate investigations - one criminal and one internal - looking into White's actions. The criminal investigation is independent of and parallel to the internal investigation, Webster has said.
Asked about the investigation, Kanawha County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Plants said his office was still receiving information from police.
Plants said his office will likely meet with witnesses before making a decision.
"That takes a little more time," he said. "We want to make sure there's an independent investigation done. ... Just like all investigations, I'm going to review everything promptly - I mean weeks, not months."
Webster acknowledged that he has an interest in knowing whether the prosecutor's office plans to file charges against White. The more information he has before making his own decision on White's status with the department, the better, he said.
"When you're talking about these kinds of things, it's a very deliberate, systematic process. You can't shortcut it," he said.
Mike Clifford, White's attorney, said he has not heard from Charleston Police about the case for at least a month.
"We've been waiting for this thing to proceed so we can all see what we are going to do." Clifford said.
White started with the police department in August 1979. He is one of four captains in the department, the highest civil service rank.
Webster said White worked in the professional standards division, but was in an investigative role and was not in charge of the division.
In White's absence, Webster has moved Sgt. Autumn Davis from the Criminal Investigation Division to professional standards.
Reach Gary Harki at gha...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-5163.
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