Police officers involved in an April escort for actor Charlie Sheen did nothing wrong, but the department needs to fix serious problems with its handling of escorts for the famous, sports teams and even wounded servicemen and women, the D.C. inspector general has concluded in a new report. “To date, [Special Operations Division] officers seemingly have executed these details effectively and without significant incident,” said the report, which was released on Wednesday. “However, the OIG believes that the casual manner in which [the police department] administers and documents elements of the practice is fraught with risk and potential liability.”
The reports found that the police department does not consistently coordinate with other jurisdictions when it provides escorts, it doesn’t charge the escort recipients enough to cover fuel costs and there is a “lack of clear written guidelines.”
The Sheen escort kicked off a firestorm of media scrutiny for the department after Sheen posted on Twitter a picture supposedly showing the speedometer hitting 80 mph as he rode escorted from Washington Dulles International Airport to a performance at DAR Constitution Hall. The inspector general said he couldn’t verify the officers were driving the speed limit, but officers confirmed they used lights and sirens to deter a group of paparazzi that started trailing Sheen at the airport.
“The team does not view the decisions and actions of those SOD officers involved in the Sheen escort as having been cavalier or contrary to established practice,” the inspector general’s report said.
But Police Chief Cathy Lanier recently told the D.C. Council that policies were violated by officers who gave Sheen the escort.
Lanier said the officers should have received approval from higher-ranking officials before providing the escort, and should not have used their lights.
In a statement Wednesday, Lanier said the report’s focus extended beyond the celebrity escorts she was describing in the council hearing, instead also focusing on escorts for sports teams.
“The general order is clear and has been to previous commanders and staff,” Lanier said. “Just because folks got caught and claimed they didn’t know about the general order does not excuse the fact that they violated the policy.”
She added, “the report recommends doing more celebrity escorts because it brings a positive image for city. I disagree. Using police cars to escort celebrities … is inappropriate.”
