Former IPSD director sentenced

By RICHARD JENKINS

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Bessemer - The former director of the Ironwood Public Safety Department will have to pay a fine and complete community service after being sentenced by videoconference in Gogebic County District Court Wednesday on a misdemeanor eavesdropping charge.

Gregory Dean Klecker, 61, was ordered to pay a $600 fine and complete seven days of community service for attempted eavesdropping in relation to his use of a recorder to document a conversation between two other people in the public safety building in early April of 2018.

"Recording employees in the workplace - for whatever reason that may have been - is unprofessional, it's inappropriate and ultimately it's criminal," Judge Anna Talaska said, noting the court's acceptance of Klecker's plea deal in January meant the criminality of the action was no longer a matter of interpretation but was deemed a fact. "This is also an act by a person in authority - which regardless of police officer status - you are a person in authority when you're here working as a supervisor for other employees. You took advantage of that position and, by doing that, committed a criminal act."

Talaska's sentence comes as a new state law governing the sentencing for misdemeanor charges in Michigan took effect Wednesday.

The law requires judges "to presume that a sentence of a non-jail, non-probation sentence is appropriate in all misdemeanors; with the exception of serious misdemeanors," Talaska said, adding there's a specific list of serious misdemeanors and eavesdropping isn't included.

She noted judges can impose a misdemeanor sentence that includes jail or probation if there are "reasonable grounds" to do so, but this case doesn't reach that requirement.

"I think, quite frankly, this case tiptoes very close to the court being able to find reasonable grounds (for either jail or probation)," Talaska said. "But, given the fact this case has been pending for a significant period of time, given the fact that Mr. Klecker's employment has been substantially impacted by this case, given the fact that he is currently residing in North Carolina - all those factors being taken into consideration, the court does not feel that a jail or probation sentence would be appropriate."

She also noted the misdemeanor conviction would likely harm his future employment opportunities.

At his plea hearing in January, Klecker said he heard a disturbance in the room next to his office, including "loud, profane language" on April 6, 2018, and used a recorder in his pocket to "memorialize" the incident to deal with later. He said no one else was aware he was recording when he stepped into the hallway and began recording.

According to information presented in court during the January hearing, the conversation that was recorded was between two IPSD employees.

Klecker became IPSD director in the fall of 2017 and served through August 2018, when the city announced it had "separated its employment agreement" with Klecker after less than a year on the job to "improve departmental operations and employee morale."

Klecker and his lawyer - Saginaw attorney Hugh R. LeFevre - asked for a delayed sentence, which would allow the charge to potentially be removed from Klecker's record after a period of time, although LeFevre acknowledged the court had previously indicated it was unlikely to grant the request and suggested a fine as an alternative.

Klecker said he encountered challenges as he made what he called "needed changes" in the department and said he supported the members of the department. He said the use of a recorder to supplement note taking was common among supervisors and he didn't necessarily feel he acted improperly but said he accepted the prosecutor's interpretation that it constituted a crime.

"The matter before this court was a single incident. I sincerely hope this does not define who I am, or overshadow the good outcomes the taxpayers witnessed," Klecker said.

In asking for a delay of sentence, Klecker said the case has already impacted his career and "clouded his otherwise excellent reputation in law enforcement."

"While (the case) has been pending I have been precluded from pursuing viable opportunities to continue my law enforcement career in Michigan. The delay resulted in ... a lapse of my police certification," Klecker said.

Talaska rejected the request for a delay of sentence.

"Mr. Klecker, as you indicated yourself ... you are not above the law. No officer is, no individual is," said Talaska, noting Klecker had already benefited from having the charge dropped from a felony to a misdemeanor. "I feel giving you a delay of sentence in this case would essentially say what you did was OK and you did get a pass and I don't think that's appropriate in this case."

Iron County, Michigan, Prosecutor Melissa Powell prosecuted the case. She highlighted Klecker's management role at the time of his actions and criticized his actions, even if she understood that he faced challenges coming into a new location.

"People who are in management positions who go around surveilling, and listening, and listening in on their employees and recording those conversations is somewhat reprehensible behavior. I don't think that's something that normally occurs in the workplace," Powell said. "As a police officer with years and years of experience, he knows what the law is."

She said that if the incident at the heart of the case was significant enough to record then it was significant enough to be handled at that time.

Although the state law precludes a probation sentence, Talaska said Klecker could potentially face contempt of court charges if he didn't satisfy the community service requirement in the next 14 weeks.

Klecker was also ordered to pay various court costs and fees as part of his sentence.