Officials vow commitment to 'constructive communication'

By Doug Spoon, Editor

The City of Menifee’s first public statement since Menifee 24/7’s report of allegations against leadership of the Menifee Police Department failed to address the issues raised in those news articles.

As the list of current and former officers who have made allegations grows to 10, City officials have yet to acknowledge the charges of unwarranted disciplinary action, favoritism and policy violations against captains and lieutenants in the department, chronicled here and here. All this as yet another officer was placed on paid administrative leave this week, Menifee 24/7 has learned.

The day began with a text from Mayor Ricky Estrada telling a reporter, “We should meet face to face, man to man” in order to “build a better rapport with each other.” The reporter responded by making a second request for a statement regarding the Menifee PD issue. Estrada didn’t respond to the request.

But later, in a statement approved by the City's legal counsel, Estrada was quoted as saying the following:

“I am aware of the articles and have been reviewing the information with our City leadership. While I am unable to discuss any specific personnel issues, I remain committed to ensuring that our police department and officers have the support they need to succeed.”

City Manager Armando Villa’s statement was no more forthcoming, saying in part, “As you know, the City of Menifee is unable to comment on personnel matters … Based on the feedback received from our officers, the Menifee Police Department has made it a priority over the last year to facilitate open and constructive communication between our police officers and department leadership.”

There was no acknowledgement of the allegations, no denial of them, or any announcement of plans for an internal investigation. The statement did not include comment from Police Chief Chris Karrer. Menifee Public Information Officer Phil Southard said in a separate message to Menifee 24/7 that Karrer has been on medical leave with an unspecified health issue “since mid-May” – something that was never announced to the public.

Although he is reported to be on leave, Karrer has been sending and answering emails, including an email to Menifee 24/7 on Friday and one to his staff on Saturday, warning them of the allegations about to be published. Karrer did not respond to an additional email sent by a reporter Wednesday night, again seeking comment on the issues.

Captains Dave Gutierrez and Heriberto Gutierrez are sharing responsibilities as Acting Chief of Police.

Meanwhile, another former officer contacted Menifee 24/7 to go on the record with accounts of incidents that caused him to leave the department in 2022. Daniel Higgins came from the Oakland Police Department as one of the original sergeants at Menifee in 2020.

As he left the department two years later, Higgins sent an email to colleagues, saying, “It is no secret that there is a circle or clique that gets away with many questionable behaviors at the department and never faces IA (Internal Affairs) investigations … Not only is it wrong, but it is also a reflection of the poor leadership, nepotism, and people who lack emotional intelligence.”

Higgins and his wife, who was earning medical retirement benefits from Oakland PD, chose to move to Oklahoma and bought a farm. They are still living there, where Higgins is a fifth grade teacher and happy to be out of law enforcement. He earns military retirement benefits.

“I was sitting here on 10 acres, being a pretend farmer, and I got bored,” he said in a phone interview. “I decided to become a teacher, where I have the exact same schedule as the kids. I’m very happy.”

That wasn’t the case a few years ago, after a strong beginning in which Higgins said he helped form Menifee’s K-9 unit, its Explorers program for youth, and its SWAT team. He claims the trouble started when a lieutenant complained that Higgins was receiving one hour of overtime pay per week as the department supervisor for the Explorers (per department policy).

“He started accusing me of doing it for the money," Higgins recalled. "I said, ‘It’s one hour. I don’t need the money. I’m following regulations.’ He got mad that I called him out and pointed out that some officers volunteer with the Explorers for free. Then he sent out an email saying nobody should volunteer for the group ever again.”

Higgins recalled another time when he was involved with a home invasion incident at 2 a.m. He finished with that assignment in time to report to a 6 a.m. SWAT training session. At 9 a.m., he reported on the home invasion incident to the captain in charge. That captain filed an IA report on Higgins, saying he failed to immediately report the incident to his superior.

Moreover, Higgins said the captain who filed the complaint against him was the only superior who reviewed the case and made a ruling on his discipline. “He was the judge, jury and executioner,” Higgins said.

Higgins said the same captain filed an IA report on him sometime later, saying Higgins failed to report to him that he had started receiving workers’ compensation benefits for an injury suffered on SWAT duty.

“I told him, ‘You heard me talking about it before, but now you say I didn’t notify the chain of command,'” Higgins said. “His response was, ‘I don’t know if you told me or you didn’t, but the case has been filed.’”