Officer’s racially charged remarks stun local Urban League president

By Ed Runyan

WARREN — A city police lieutenant who made racially charged statements while driving around the city in August also was responsible for “changing a lot of policies” aimed at helping black residents, a local black leader said.

Lt. Joe Marhulik admitted calling two men on bicycles a derogatory term for a black person that night and spending time at two low-income housing projects talking to residents and causing a disturbance.

To some, his behavior might sound like confirmation of allegations made by Warren citizens five years ago to the U.S. Department of Justice that led to 30 pages of recommendations on how to better treat its citizens.

But Thomas Conley, president of the Greater Warren-Youngstown Urban League, said Marhulik is not one of the officers he would have expected to demonstrate racial intolerance.

“I was quite shocked that that did happen,” Conley said.

In fact, after the Justice Department interviewed dozens of residents in 2005 regarding officers’ conducting strip searches during traffic stops, using excessive force and ignoring citizen complaints, it was Marhulik and Capt. Tim Bowers who were responsible for “changing a lot of policies” and implementing Justice Department recommendations, Conley said.

Bowers is now police chief, getting the top job after the city administration pressured John Mandopoulos to resign earlier this year.

Because of Marhulik’s positive actions in the past, Conley said he’s inclined to forgive the lieutenant for the things he did in August, as long as Marhulik is willing to acknowledge his mistakes and apologize.

“We don’t want to move forward with the same old same old now that we have a new chief,” Conley said.

Conley said his understanding is that the civil-service procedure used in Warren gives Marhulik the right to be promoted to captain to fill the position Bowers once held, regardless of the August incident.

“Knowing him [Marhulik], I feel he feels awfully bad about what happened,” Conley said. “I think there can be reconciliation. I think it [reconciliation] is important for this community and the police department.”

That reconciliation has begun, Marhulik and city Safety-Service Director Doug Franklin said.

Marhulik said he met last week with about seven members of the Trumbull County Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance, trying to “make amends” for his actions.

He declined to be specific with a Vindicator reporter in discussing what led to his behavior Aug. 15-16, saying it involved private medical issues for which he is being treated.

He does believe, however, that it is important that he has owned up to the accusations brought against him.

“I didn’t challenge it. I didn’t split hairs. I accepted responsibility. You don’t fight and argue when you’re wrong,” he said.

Warren police Lt. Jeff Cole, internal-affairs officer for the department, reported that Marhulik admitted using prescription medication and mixing it with a “few” beers Aug. 15 before driving around the city with his adult son in the car.

Marhulik until recently has been supervisor over the Warren police officers who work in the Trumbull Metropolitan Housing Authority housing complexes, so he has spent a great deal of time there in recent years.

At the Stonegate Apartments, a security guard called police, saying Marhulik appeared to be drunk and wearing his service revolver while talking with residents about 1:30 a.m.

A Warren police officer who responded to the incident said Marhulik appeared to be “unsteady and slightly confused” and told the officer, “I know you guys [police officers] get a lot of calls from this area, and I was just sitting in the area and talking to tenants.”

After Cole completed his investigation, Bowers suspended Marhulik without pay for two weeks for violating several departmental policies, such as acting unprofessionally.

Bowers said he’s not aware of Marhulik’s ever being accused of being a racist during his many years with the department, calling him instead “one of our most community minded officers.” Bowers said he didn’t believe the accusations until Marhulik admitted them.

“I was quite surprised, and I know his state of mind was not normal, not the Joe Marhulik we know,” Bowers said.

The Rev. Dr. Joshua Moore, president of the Ministerial Alliance, said he would not comment on the meeting between Marhulik and the members of the Ministerial Alliance until after the group meets next week to decide what it wants to say about what Marhulik said and did.

The Ministerial Alliance consists of pastors from about 40 churches. Most of the ministers are black, but about four are white, Moore said.

runyan@vindy.com