By Billy Cunningham, the great American. Of course, the issue of the firing Charlie Say, administrative discharge in a sense of Chief of Police Thigi is on the front burner and it's one of the big election issues coming up on Tuesday. In the studio with me? Now, is Captain russ Neville retired? Is that correct? How many years you've been four thirty four years? Did you enjoy it?
I did? I enjoyed it, respect it, appreciate it.
But more importantly, you're the brother, let's get it out there of Terry Thigi. She is your sister, correct, yes, sir. A little bit of the history of Chief Thiji A mother of four? Is that correct?
Yes, sir.
She went through the whole police department from bottom to top with four kids, and I guess there are adults by this point. And then how many grandchildren does she have?
She has nine grandchildren.
So the city manager and Mary wants to fire a mother and a grandmother. Correct, yes, Tell me about Tell me about your feelings about what happened to Chief Thigi and why was so unfair?
Well, I think there's a combination of reasons. But the way it came about is ridiculously unfair, bordering on inhumane. There were opportunities for communication that could have ended in a different fashion. Basically, what they did is they forced her to fight, and we're not going to walk away from a fight. She dedicated thirty five years to the city. She was a good team player, a leader. She is not and I emphasized not a DEI higher. She earned
everything she got through her thirty five years. She was mentored by some of the best and brightest minds of this organization over the last thirty five years. Tom Striker, Jim Whalen, Vince Demassi. Not bad, not bad at all. So if anybody wants to throw DEI out related to Terry, they are way off base.
She earned it, earned it a hard way, the hard way, being a mother and a grandmother while being in a cop You mentioned this the other day. Not easy. It's hard for a man, a father, much less a mother and a grandma. Been put in sixty seventy hours a week on behalf of the people of Cincinnati. And she did it without without reservation, without anger, without frustration. She did her job.
She did it with pride and commitment and dedication and care. I couldn't begin to tell the amount Terry cares regarding the communities. And I mean all fifty two, not one or two, like the mayor, all fifty two communities, all demographics. It doesn't matter to Terry. What's right is right, and what service needs to be provided shall be provided.
Why was she I'll use the term fired, because that's where it's coming. I can't imagine after this review, bought and paid for by the mayor, the law firm that he hired, is going to come back and say, oh, you know, Mayor, you're wrong. You know what's going to come in a couple months is smearing of thief chief Fiji. Well, why do you think it happened.
I think it happened because she had a desire to provide services to the community that would reduce diminish impact violent crime. And I think she had thoughts, plans, and ideas on that. And I will leave it at that for now until things work themselves out going forward. And I believe the mayor had a different opinion.
As far as the administrative put on the administrative leave with pay of your sister. The mayor said a day or two after this happened, we're going to start enforcing
the law. We're going to have misdemeanors being enforced. You know, as a cop, you come from a family of cops going back about one hundred years that when you enforce the broken window theory of law enforcement, when someone is taking drugs in public, when someone is sleeping on a public sidewalk, when someone is shooting through a window and
he's classified as property damage, you know something's wrong. Do you think the mayor got the message that somehow you cops are going to have to start enforcing the law because it hasn't happened so far.
I couldn't begin to tell you what message the mayor got, but I will offer to you those services are provided lesser crimes are focused on and were focused on under Terry. But the reality it is Bill, if there's a revolving door at the justice center, or if there's early release for no justified reason, placing people back into the communities where they just victimized people without accountability one through fifteen times,
it's irrelevant. They there needs to be something done to control the early release and the offenders being placed back out into the streets without any accountability.
That's not on the coppers it's not on the cops.
It's on the judges exactly. And I am here to say the cops work hard. I'm not criticizing for one second the officers of Cincinnati or any agency in Hamilcanty and beyond. I'm here to tell you that the administrative suspension of Terry was in humaine unjust. And let's think about the fact that it's asked backwards. You place your ound administrative suspension, then you decide you're going to hire a law firm, and your conducting investigation determined why you
placed yourun administrative suspension. I'll leave the rest of that lawyer, mister m and Terry. But everybody with a lick of sense understands what this is about, what's driving it, who's driving it, And that's where I think the conversation needs to go as we go forward. Today.
I think Channel twelve had this report about the emails, the text messages back and forth. A precipitating factor, according to Cheryl Long, was that your sister Chief Thiji joined the Hamlety County Police Chiefs Group without the permission of the city manager or the mayor. Was that a made up Was that precipitating it wasn't unusual for the chief of police of Cincinnati, which is about what about forty percent of the county to join a group of other
police chiefs. Is that a bad act? Was that wrong for Thiji to do?
I don't see why it was wrong or how it could be wrong. I mean, it's part of your responsibilities as the head of an organization is to communicate with heads of other organizations and put together strategies and plans. I just have to leave it at that until anything goes forward involving the case that may be pending.
Well, what is does Chief Thiji want her job back?
I can't speak for her Bill either. I talked to her every day.
You must talk to her every day. Talk to her because she want her job back.
I'm going to refrain from answering a question based on mister M's recommendations. Let me say this.
I would say no, because how do you work in that environment when you can't implement the policies and procedures you want to implement. Because the city manager and the mayor, and I guess Counsel Scottie Johnson others are saying, don't do that. In other words, put in speed bumps, don't
pull people over for traffic offenses. I had on the corner about a month ago, and she was going to a big event, I think Fiddler on the Roof at the Music Hall, and she and a retired federal judge felt threatened walking across Washington Park when they left the play early because they knew they had to get back
to the car before dark. Those are the things that I think that the police should administer and take care of that the police directly indirectly receive orders or indications from the city manager or the mayor not to enforce certain statutes. I think that was the case. That's why the mayor said we're going to start enforcing the criminal law.
Was there a sense under your sister's leadership that she was told directly or indirectly by expression or implication not to enforce certain criminal statutes.
Not that I'm aware of, and I talked to her every day, and I think it is something that needs to be kept between her and her attorney and for any future purposes. So I really do refrain from discussing it, Bill, because it is right for her going forward with any potential when will she speak when her attorneys when the case is settled potentially.
So going back to my point, does she want her job back? You can't say yes to that.
I'm not going to answer that. I will tell you this, you wouldn't want it. I wouldn't want it. My brother Mike, who's in the studio with us, wouldn't want it. But I'm not going to speak for Terry.
Why wouldn't you and your brother Mike went Why wouldn't someone who's come up through the ranks from the bottom of the top not want the job today?
Well today, meaning only under these circumstances wanting the job prior to this happening to her, I would have even wanted it at that point. But under these circumstances, why would anybody want to go back and work and report to two individuals that have treated them so inhumanely. One reason somebody may want to do it because they care about the community, and they care about the members of the organization, and they appreciate the support they're getting from
each of those. So you have to balance those elements and reporting to two people who treat it so inhumanely, who clearly don't want you there, And let's emphasize it is two people Bill, it's not one.
What was it inhumane about her discharge?
It was done in a shockingly surprising way. She didn't see it coming, didn't see it coming. It was done after a text notification to come back from a police common difference where she was there to represent the city of Cincinnati and the police department in an honorable a leadership fashion, and it was done with minimal to no communication. And I'll leave it at that.
From chera Long's perspective, why do it then? It's like embarrassing. According to media accounts, someone was listening to me at one seventeen PM. Somebody told me her days were in the single digits.
Yeah, I heard you.
And she goes to I was told that. And so she goes to Denver for this national deal and I'm thinking this isn't good. But somebody approved her trip to Denver. She didn't do this. Did city manager approve her trip to Denver? I couldn't tell you the process on who approved it.
Bill. She had authorization to go to Denver and represent the City of Cincinnati, the police Department, in the constituents of Cincinnati and represent them in high fashion, in high order, honorably, and she was summoned back shot.
Would you say she was shocked at that maneuver by Cheryl Long.
I would say she was caught that she needed to come back so quickly.
Because right now, as I understand it, she's an I WILL employee. That means she can be fired for a good reason, a bad reason, or no reason. It can't be an illegal reason. But if the city manager would say to Teresa Theichi, you know things aren't going very well, I have to let you go. Let's talk about how we do this. That's different than what happened. Correct, That
is definitely different than what happened. So she gave an interview somewhere that she said she sent a text or something Sheryl Long that said, I got thirty five years in October twentieth as my anniversary. I'm not going to be here forever. I want to have some indication as to the future. Do you recall seeing that text. I'm aware that text is out there. And as far as her being out there, was she planning to retire anyway?
Because when you say, you know, you've been at a job for a long time and somebody you get an indication things are going the wrong direction. When she said, I know I'm not going to be there forever. Was that an indication from her that she knew something was coming?
Honestly cannot answer that. I don't know what her thought was when she sent that. I haven't discussed that text with her.
Do you know how she was fired put on administrative leave?
You know how? I truly don't. I don't recall if it's something she was told or if it was something that was notified by her attorney. I truly don't recall how it came to her.
Was she shocked about that? She was caught off guard, off guard and it just came out of the blue. Yes, How is she doing today? This afternoon? Is she actually it's interesting you ask. Over a thousand people have asked me that question in the last two weeks. She's doing well as well as can be. She's spending she's doing as well as can be. She's she's she's terry, she's a leader, she's confident, she's independent, she's capable to overcome anything. But with that said, it's a kick to the gut.
It's internally straining.
Her. Her feelings are hurt, her reputation has been tarnished. But with that said Bill, she I gid you not. She is approached everywhere we go, or she goes in one hundred and fifty mile radius of Cincinnati, with people saying they support her, they believe in her, they know what's really going on, they know it's politics. She was at the Bengals game the other day and there were people yelling from two stamp two levels up down to her saying we support you, we believe in you. Keep
fighting the fight. But with that said, that's all great, right, that's all awesome for her to hear. But at the same time, there's the internal hit that comes with that of what she's going through that would even cause people to need to yell that out to her and show that support to her. But she's doing as well as anybody could do under this situation.
She's going sixty seventy miles an hour. All of a sudden there's a crash and at this point she I guess four kids, how many grandkids?
Nine?
Nine, maybe some on the way. She's a mother and a grandmother, and now she's going to care for her family, and she's always cared for her family. Now she's always physically present. She wasn't physically present. I would think for a long part of her life because she was a cop, and going forward, who knows what's going to happen. I think the important takeaway is Number One, she was shocked
about what happened. Number Two, your indications are she won't take the job back as it's presently constituted.
Because I don't mix it up. I'm not indicating one or the other. I'm telling you I don't know what Terry's answer that definitively is or would be. And even if I did, and I wouldn't share it, I would let her do it and her attorney do it at due time. What I'm telling you is you wouldn't take it back. I wouldn't take it back, and Mike wouldn't take it back. But Terry's independent, Terry's confident, and that's for Terry to decide if that ever comes to fruition.
Is there some information she has about the mayor or the city manager that would require her to sign an NDA in order to get the settlement?
To my knowledge, none of those discussions have taken place, and if they've had, Terry's kept them between herself and her attorney.
So there may be something that you can make public to embarrass the city behavior.
No, I'm just responding to the NBA. I don't know the embarrassment side of it, Bill, I can't answer it. I think there are things that took place in her in her career during her administration that would benefit her through litigation, but I don't know what those are at this time, and we'll just have to leave it that way until mister m decides what to do with what information he compiles, or what he chooses to do.
Going forward to Davis with Chris Finny Law firm, a week before all these events transpired, she was, in your view, respected by Cheryl long respected. I can recall we had numerous news conferences on the air. It was af Tab, it was Cheryl and and it was long and also Thiji. The three of them stood up there. Questions were asked of the mayor, for example, are you satisfied with the
chief of police? Every time it was yes, Yes, her evaluations were exceptional or above exceptional, whatever the that is, and that this was up to the moment she was put on administrative leave. Was there a triggering event that went from exceptional to your gone? Because normally in normal life, you if you have a bad employee, you give them bad reviews. You know you got to improve this, got to do that. I've seen the reviews. They're off the charts. Teresa Tiji was at the top. All of a sudden,
she's gone. What happened in those two or three days that caused that to transpire? When the mayor says she's better in sliced bread, now she's going to be sliced, what happened?
It's the question for the mayor to answer. It's a question. He's not a question for the mayor answer. It's a question for the manager.
She's not talking.
You're correct, and we don't know what it is that caused this to happen.
Bill, yesterday, you're looking at the mayor. You were sitting at that table. You've been in public service in Cincinnati for more than thirty years, a captain well known, the family and Neville family is well known. You look at the mayor and you said, we need a strongly or a week leader. What did you say to the mayor and he did not respond to you? Man to man Eyeball to eyeball, what did you say to Aftab?
Basically, I basically shared that the city is under week leadership, whether it be him or the manager. I said that, I think people who are going out to vote need to make a decision on what's most important to them. Is it going forward, is it improvement or is it maintaining a loyalty or commitment to whatever thought process you have that have placed him in there. And I offered to people not to vote for the coward.
So you're calling Aftab pure of all, a coward.
I called him a coward.
What about Cheryl Long?
Cheryl Long wasn't there. She's out there, she skipped, She wasn't there. She did arrive. I think as we were leaving chambers, I did not see her go in. I was told she came in after we had left chambers. So that's where we are.
She did a great job in North College Hill. Now she's doing it for the people of Cincinnati.
Yeah, it's the decision making of those that are in charge. Now, Bill that has us where we are. That mayor has no he generates no benefit to the city of Cincinnati. He does not, truly, truly, in his gut, in his heart, care about the people of Cincinnati, the constituents. He's wasting money, he's wasting resources. He treated a thirty five year veteran of this department like the trash to be thrown out.
And I think the voters please please understand that literally crime if things hadn't happened in the downtown business district, I don't know that this happens. The American answer that litigation may answer that I don't know, but I will offer you have crime plateaus, you have an ebb and flow of crime throughout the other fifty one neighborhoods. Mayor has never shown this type of response and benefit or support of those neighborhoods. And I think I think it's
I'm not thinking. I'm certain this is a political decision. It's a scapegoat situation. I think he's weak. I think he's a coward, and I think he's bad for this city. And I wish people would come out, get out of their comfort zone, vote for new leadership. And I really believe this. If you want to go down to council and vote for four or five of the current council members,
do it. Do it, get some new council representative. And there's Smitherman, Keating Curry, I think still Scottie Johnson actually on there now, some mixture, some new and some old blood, and let's see what can be done. But regarding the mayor, do not do not cast a vote for the marriage just because you're down there voting for the council representatives. Vote for new leadership. People know what that means. Vote
for new leadership in that mayor seat. If you want to see economic improvement, if you want to see first responder management improvement, if you want to see humane treatment. I highly recommend people come out and those that haven't voted in ten years or so, Billy, check the website, see if their registration is still valid. Come out, come out. We're still sitting at twenty five twenty eight percent right now. Low.
If we get that to say thirty five forty forty five fifty, specifically on the west side, Hyde Park, Mount look Out, Mount Washington, we can have new leadership. Yeah, people have to vote to get off. Vote off your duff and go do something. If you care, I mean if you don't care.
If you don't care, don't vote, don't care. If you like the status quo, want to continue with this, you know what to do. Don't vote or vote for AFTAB you call him the coward of Cincinnati. You have to have puivault.
Well, I think he's a bad manager. I think he's disloyal, I think he lies. I think he's a coward the way he's handled this. And you know what, a week and a half prior to this, he says to my brother that there's no light between he and the chief.
While all this is brewing, apparently, I mean yesterday, my brother Mike has approached by Iris Rowley at council chambers to show support for Terry and how much she believes she's being mistreated and this is being let me finish this being mistreated, and how much she treats, appreciates and respects her and wishes things work out well. Whether Iris believes that or not, I don't know. But people who say those things, if you truly believe them, get out
from behind closed doors and share it. It's not about Terry. It's about future seats for this chief position, the fire chief position. It's about the future of the city. Right. If we want to use Terry as a process of explaining it and have any opportunity to share it, okay, we'll do that. She shouldn't be going through it. But with that said, there's council members reach out and they say, how hey, we don't like the way this is being done.
They sit there and they they toe the line, as you say, they tow the line, Bill, And that is that leadership, is that character. It's neither we.
Got to run, Captain Russ Noville, good luck, get out and vote. We get the government we deserve. And at times that concerns me. Thank you, sir, captain, thank you very much. Than Bill Cunningham News Radio seven hundred WO