Friday, October 11, 2024

Fired Ukiah Police Sergeant Kevin Murray Will Never Wear a Badge Again Under California’s New Accountability Laws

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Ukiah Police Officer Kevin Murray and his K9 Partner Thor [Picture from the Ukiah Police Department website]

Kevin Murray, the former Ukiah Police Department sergeant at the center of multiple circumstances of criminal misconduct, has been stripped of his law enforcement credentials by the State of California.

Though Murray’s decertification occurred on September 12, 2023 (his name appearing on the Police Officers Standards and Training(POST) website as one of dozens of California cops who have had their certification either suspended or revoked since January when the law went into effect), the information hasn’t been reported previously that we know of

Ukiah Police Department Chief Cedric Crook told us candidly, “It’s a good thing that Kevin made the list. Not proud to see Ukiah PD on the list, but he needed to be on it.” 

POST’s revocation came over one year after Murray made out with what critics described as a “sweetheart plea deal.”  At the beginning of his court trial, Murray faced seven felonies including forcible rape and burglary. 

An analysis of his crimes conducted by the Sonoma County Probation Department recommended he be sentenced to one year in state prison noting his offenses demonstrated “criminal sophistication”. 

Instead, he pled no contest to felony preventing or dissuading a victim from reporting a crime. He left court sentenced to two years of formal probation, with a two-year suspended sentence.

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Many community members decried the deal knowing that disgraced police officers often continued their law enforcement career at another agency. Though locally Murray was done, who was to stop him from hurting another community? 

California Senate Bill 2 is what stopped him. The legislation codified a statewide system that would decertify or suspend police officers who have committed “serious misconduct”. The bill articulated nine types of conduct that rise to the level of “serious misconduct” including acts of dishonesty, abuse of power, and physical or sexual abuse.

One of the legislation’s co-authors California Senator Steven Bradford wrote, “But for too long, problematic officers that commit heinous acts in one department are either not held accountable and continue to be a problem for that community, or are punished, but able to find employment in another department.”

An officer who is formally decertified under SB 2 will never be a California cop again and their name will be added to the National Decertification Index used to track decertified officers across the United States.

Meagan Poulous, the Public Information Officer for California’s Peace Officer Standards and Training told us Murray was officially decertified because he was convicted of a felony. 

The felony she refers to is the very one he pled no contest to in the “sweetheart” plea deal.

Kevin Murray [Picture from the MCSO Booking Logs]

Kevin Murray’s career in law enforcement is over, but his victims remain. Consider the expansiveness of his misconduct.

  • In 2018, Murray entered a Ukiah residence, tackled a tenant, and proceeded to kick and tackle the man. Murray’s actions resulted in a civil suit and a payout of $1,050,000.
  • A civil lawsuit that is still in court alleges Murray sexually assaulted a fellow Ukiah Police Department Officer after forcing his way into her hotel room.
  • Another ongoing civil suit accuses Murray of raping a Ukiah woman multiple times in 2014. The court documents reveal that Murray’s alleged victim was a close friend of his then-fiancee and he carried a firearm with him during the attacks.
  • Murry was finally fired from the Ukiah Police in early 2021 after allegedly forcing his way into the hotel room of a woman he arrested and sexually assaulted. Investigators found methamphetamine in his work locker around that time.
  • After being fired from UPD and facing accusations of rape and burglary, Murray was actually cited for allegedly stealing a woman’s wallet from a Lakeport Grocery store. 

Ukiah Police Chief Cedric Crook, a 25-year veteran of the agency, officially took the helm in March of this year determined to correct the course of the Ukiah Police Department. 

He took office amid departmental upheaval. Kevin Murray’s exploits were in the headlines and Noble Waidelich, Crook’s predecessor, had been abruptly fired in June 2022 after he allegedly sexually assaulted a Ukiah woman while in uniform.

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Chief Crook played an active role in the agency’s internal investigation of Murray and dealt with the fallout of Weidelich’s exit leaving him feeling “betrayed and angry.”

He told us that when police officers break the law, “it affects every person wearing a badge. It affects public perception. When cops do the wrong thing, every cop pays for it.”

Since taking the lead at UPD, Chief Crook has set out to rebuild trust with the city he serves and hold his officers to the highest standards.

Chief Crook said Senate Bill 2 is an important tool for police accountability mandating that any allegation of serious misconduct be reported to POST within 10 days. California’s legislation provides law enforcement leaders a new tool to impress upon their staff that “complaints are going to be taken seriously and even the smallest complaint can have serious consequences.”

He could not go into specifics, but since his time as Chief, there have been overall “fewer internal investigations” of officer misconduct. To eliminate potential bias, Ukiah Police contracts with an independent investigation agency based in Sonoma County staffed by former law enforcement to conduct internal investigations. “It’s not cheap, but it’s the right thing to do,” Crook told us.

Even though the agency’s number of internal investigations has decreased, Chief Crook said the “severity of the discipline has increased.” He is committed to “not let anything slide” which communicates to his officers that they can expect fairness from him and consistency. Chief Crook said his leadership was a “breath of fresh air” for many employees.

To build stronger bonds with Ukiah residents, Chief Crook said he is focused on building out the agency’s community policing practices. Conversations with members of Ukiah’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee have suggested more manned patrols in Ukiah’s downtown. Having recently hired a patrol lieutenant, Chief Crook said officers will soon be regularly patrolling the area. 

Nearly three years ago we broke the story of Ukiah Police Sergeant Kevin Murray being placed under arrest for burglary, sexual assault, and drug possession. Now, Murray stands as an example of California’s police accountability laws protecting the public from bad cops.

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12 COMMENTS

  1. He should be in prison period! Matt where’s the story on the sergeant that was recently fired? Where’s the story on the X chief. Corruption at its best!

    • Kevin got a slap on the wrist because he has dirt on the higher ups’. I’m sure a lot of people do. Nothing shocks me anymore with verdicts and sentencing not matching the crimes.

  2. The first officer to make this state decertification list was from the Fort Bragg Police dept. Now Murray, with Ukiah PD, joins the list of exiled cops, but it’s not ending there either. This year there was a Sacramento woman alleging mistreatment by the hands of Mendocino County’s Sheriff dept too. Time will tell if anything comes of it. I have a feeling there will be more former and current Mendo law enforcements officials added to this list as time goes on.

  3. When a person becomes an employee of ‘law enforcement’ they are sworn in this is an excerpt.
    “On my honor, I will never Betray my integrity, my character Or the public trust. I will always have the courage to hold myself and others accountable for our actions. I will always maintain the highest ethical standards and uphold the values of my community, and the agency I serve.”
    What has been lacking is the punishment for them breaking this oath.
    There should be a mandatory prison sentence for any ‘law enforcenent officer ‘ who violates this oath, who crosses that thin line between law abiding to law violating.
    The community needs the trust and faith that any conviction for a law enforcement officer is going to be given the highest sentence that the law allows, not a “sweetheart plea deal”.

  4. If that were anyone else in ukiah, they would be in prison for life. Just another example that if you are one of the “good ol’ boys”, you’ll get a slap on the wrist! Anyone else and they would have thrown the book at them! Makes everyone who is part of upd look very suspicious and not trustworthy at all. Shaking my damn head!

  5. Rape is legal you guys. We can’t prove it even happened anymore cause wokeism means women aren’t oppressed.

    • “WOKEISM”!!! You have just outed youself as a spineless MAGA apologist for any and all crimes commotted by that archcriminal you idolize! Convicted sexual assaulter! A pestilent criminal that orchestrated an insurrection in a failed effort to get himself installed back in the White House where he would fire or imprison anyone that tried to keep him from trashing our Constitution (just like Putin did) so he could be Emperor for life (just like Putin)… executing General Milley, just like he says he wants to do… eliminating the Justice Department, to keep anyone from running the entire country like his own property (just like Putin). Grow a spine, and wake up to what is REALLY going on!

  6. How far back will sb2 reach?
    If some cops were dishonest 4 or 5 years ago and their union protected them from discipline then, can they get decertified now? Videos prove they filed false police reports and made an illegal arrest throwing me in jail overnight. Charges were dropped after I hired an attorney for $1k.

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Matt LaFever
Matt LaFeverhttps://mendofever.com/
For the past seven years, Matt LaFever has covered the North Coast of California in both print and radio news. A Humboldt State graduate, he has lived in the Emerald Triangle for nearly 20 years. His reporting spans local issues like crime and wildfires. When not writing, Matt is an avid outdoorsman, exploring Northern California’s rugged landscapes. Reach out to him at matthewplafever@gmail.com.

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