DeKalb Police Chief Bill Feithen said NIU has repeatedly ignored area departments’ concerns over their relationship with NIU Police Chief Donald Grady and his department.

“We have tried to reach out to the university with no lasting results,” Feithen said. “Any law enforcement concerns to the university have fallen on deaf ears.”

Feithen said there is only so much an agency can do when it comes to the relationship with other departments.

“What it boils down to is the Board of Trustees, President Peters and Vice President [Eddie] Williams getting it,” he said.

Grady was placed on paid administrative leave Friday as a result of an editorial published in Thursday’s Northern Star, according to a statement by Eddie Williams, vice president of finance and facilities and COO. The review, which will be conducted by an outside panel, will take about 30 days, Williams said.

Lt. Darren Mitchell is serving as lead lieutenant of the UP in Grady’s absence, Williams said in a statement Monday.

DEPARTMENT INTERACTIONS

The strained relationship between the departments negatively impacts policing around the city on a weekly basis, Feithen said.

DeKalb County Police Sheriff Roger Scott said the UP’s lack of involvement in the County Major Case Squad and Central Narcotics Task Force is a result of agencies’ collective relationship with Grady.

Scott said he has reached out to Grady a number of times through the years, but to no avail.

“I tried to mediate not just for the county but for the city and Sycamore as well, but it was unsuccessful,” he said. Scott said after the Feb. 14 shootings occurred Grady called for a debriefing and performance review with the surrounding agencies.

He said Grady promised a copy of the report once it was completed, but that the agencies have yet to receive any report.

Sycamore Police Chief Don Thomas was unavailable for comment.

FEB. 14 REPORT QUESTIONED

Feithen said the strained relationship affected the way the Feb. 14 shootings were handled.

“Certainly I think that it would have been easier for law enforcement to get through Feb. 14 had we had a better relationship,” Feithen said. “They were the coordinating agency for Feb 14. What we were looking for was more direction and interaction between both agencies.”

DeKalb Police have received numerous Freedom of Information Act requests to respond to the Feb. 14 shootings, Feithen said.

“The university’s response to this is that the investigation is ongoing,” Feithen said. “That is news to investigating officers. There is no evidence of an ongoing investigation.”

Feithen said Grady told him the university was waiting for an FBI report to be issued.

“It was our understanding that it was going to be a psychological report about the shooter and that there was not going to be any investigative clues from that report,” Feithen said. “It was released a couple of weeks ago and it was exactly what we were expecting.”

All comments are moderated before being published. We will not edit your comments, but we also will not approve those that are abusive, off-topic, attack another poster or contain information we know to be libelous or false.

During peak weekday viewing times, most comments will be reviewed within six hours. For more detailed information, click here.

After submitting your comment, check below for a confirmation message.

• Your name:
• Enter text from image:
  

• Your comment:

* 300-character count. HTML formatting will not display.