Mobile’s Police Chief will reportedly reject a settlement offer made by the city, according to Fox10 TV in Mobile. This comes as city council leaders gave Paul Prine a deadline at noon on Friday, April 26 to accept that settlement agreement, in which he would have to resign and be removed as Police Chief. Prine has served the community for nearly three decades.
“He would remain employed in a consulting capacity to assist us with litigation transition until the end of the mayor’s term, and provided the mayor is reelected, he would still be there until he would retire,“ Woods told WPMI regarding the offer.
Prine's response comes days after Mobile released a redacted copy of the "Use of Force Review and Report" examining practices within the city's police department. A copy can be found here.
Former U.S. Attorney Kenyen Brown conducted the investigation at the request of Mayor Sandy Stimpson after concerns were raised from the community, in which the preliminary findings resulted in Prine being placed on administrative leave.
The release of the report comes after the mayor urged city council members to consider Resolution #60-373 at their Tuesday, April 23 meeting, which would authorize the removal of Prine as Police Chief. Mobile City Council has not made a decision on the proposal, but a vote could a reportedly take place next Tuesday, April 30.
Stimpson said, in a preliminary briefing of the findings, it was shown that practices within the department are not matching up with policies, procedures and training. In the course of their investigation, it came to light that Prine made inappropriate statements early in his tenure, according to the mayor. Stimpson also said investigators relayed concerns around Prine’s authoritarian leadership style, saying he openly advised that he uses fear in his management approach.
According to the Mobile Police Department's website, Prine has more than 26 years of law enforcement experience. He started his career with the Chickasaw Police Department in 1995. He was accepted into the Mobile Police Academy in 1997 whereby he graduated at the top of his class earning the Academic Award, The Chief’s Overall Excellence Award, and was nominated by his peers to be the class president.
In October 2001, he responded to a domestic call where he was shot multiple times in the line of duty. He sustained life-threatening injuries. After returning to duty, he subsequently earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration and received his graduate degree in Criminal Justice.
