D.C. Protective Services Police Department Chief Fired
Lou Cannon, the head of the D.C. Protective Services Police Department, was fired today, a city spokesman confirms to LL.
Cannon oversaw the small police agency tasked with protecting city-owned buildings. Kenny Diggs, a spokesman for the Department of General Services, said Cannon was let go today but could not specify why citing privacy rules governing personnel decisions. A spokesman for Mayor Vince Gray also declined to explain Cannon's firing (get it?!). A call to Cannon's home line was not immediately returned.
Cannon was one of several retired Metropolitan Police Department officers who returned to District employment and was receiving both a full salary and a full pension, a double dipping deal the Gray administration said was illegal. Earlier this year, Cannon and a handful of his deputies sued the District after they stopped receiving both their full salaries and their full pensions.
About a year ago, Cannon, who was appointed by President Barack Obama to the Federal Salary Commission in 2009, was temporarily placed on leave.
LL is still trying to track down why exactly Cannon was canned, and will update as necessary.
UPDATE: Pedro Ribeiro, the mayor's spokesman, says another Protective Services employee was also let go today. But Diggs says only Cannon was fired today.
UPDATE No. 2: Cannon's lawyer, Matt LeFande, was able to shed a little bit of light on the situation. LeFande says Cannon was given a letter today telling him he was fired. LeFande has not seen the letter, but says it's his understanding that the letter said Cannon's firing was related to an incident in October involving Occupy D.C. protestors taking down the District of Columbia flag from the Wilson Building. LeFande says the letter says there was something wrong with how Cannon's agency handled and reported the incident.
The letter says that "there's false information in the report as a result of [Cannon's] failure to interview some persons involved," LeFande says.
LeFande added that he's "extremely concerned given the close temporal proximity" of Cannon's dismissal and his lawsuit against the city. "It smacks of retaliation," he says.
LeFande also said that one of Cannon's deputies, Benjamin Pietra, was also fired today. Pietra is not one of Cannon's co-plaintiffs in the lawsuit against the District.
UPDATE No. 3: Pietra, in email to LL's boss, says he's currently in Florida and was not fired today. "However, earlier today, I resigned from PSPD due to a personal family issue," he writes.
UPDATE No. 4: Rodney Parks, an assistant chief at MPD, will be taking over as interim chief of Protective Services, according to an email sent to all Protective Services employees today by Assistant PSPD Chief Stephen Watkins. (Watkins, by the way, is suing the District along with Cannon over the pension payment issue.) The full email:
From: Watkins, Stephen (DGS)
To: DGS PSPD All (DGS)
Sent: Wed Feb 08 17:51:46 2012
Subject: Chief Cannon
Effective immediately, Chief Lou Cannon is no longer with PSPD. Deputy Chief Scott or I will be attending the roll calls to answer any questions you may have. In the interim, Assistant Chief Rodney Parks, MPD, has been appointed as Interim Chief and will be performing duties with both departments. A/C Parks is a strong and capable leader and I urge all members to give him your full support and loyalty. Thank you.
8:44 pm
...related to an incident in October involving Occupy DC protestors taking down the District of Columbia flag from the Wilson Building.
Really?
10:19 pm
Lou please don't go, who will cover up all of illegal stuff we do trying to be MPD? I hope I can still drive my car home to north beach. I guess doing more search warrants are over! We were the only SPO in the country serving search warrants.
I hope Judy Brison will shred all the documents about firing all the people who fought against your rule. They said every dog has thier day, but not you Lou, you had nine lives! Who shoes will deputy chief Scott Heath will shine and lie for now? Watkins that's for leaking the email, but you will never be the chief while suing your boss! Idiot!
What will the klan and our token house worker gainey do without you. Now you know how it feels to fired! By LOU see you at the beach!
10:38 pm
DGS has become a hot mess since CA Alan Lew posted all his development buddies, all white, I leadership positions in the agency. Right under Mayor Grays nose they are forcing all employees to reapply for their jobs outside of public competition so that he can systematically get rid of all African American management and replace them with his white cronies. Vince Gray is worse than Fenty!
11:41 pm
I know some of you PSD loser are angry and mad that Cannon's shit finally caught up to him. His run is over and if you have issues with anyone you mentioned hiding behind false names, you know how to find them, if you really want to get something of your chest. You that bad say you are and I can arrange meetings with anyone of these people. Leave your gun home punk!
11:41 pm
HubbaLard. I worked with Brian for years on MPD and he was my boss. He is a straight up guy. Never got fired. Drunk Gainey pulled a gun on him for the white man. I am GG I am stupid and only making $46 bucks a week like Gainey. Another black eye for that bullshit security department. See article in the Washington Post.
11:49 pm
Hubbalard@ you are a real punk, I bet you won't say that to Hubbards face, because I worked with Hubbard and he was the real police and would kick your ass. It's sad you bad mouth a good dude about some white trailer trash. Man up and tell us who you are and we will give you a old 5d ass kicking! SPO PUNK!
12:43 am
Please LOU don't swallow your GLOCK, I understand NO FOP,NO PSD and Now you are just a fired retired SGT, living in a double wide with a double wide. You still have us Lou and our monthly meetings over the trash barrel. I see you soon I will bring the Budweiser
1:30 am
Oh, poor, hard-working police getting yelled at for hiding behind civilian vehicles... and then going and filing a report about it. Whadda we get out here, Roscoe P. Coltrane and Enus?
1:30 am
Why didn't one of the tailing cars put the guy into the wall? Where are the spike strips? Where was all the equipment our tax and fine dollars supposedly paid for? The DC govt should pay for the damaged vehicles and be done with it.
1:31 am
Then pin on a badge and show us how it's done, your highness.
1:32 am
Surely the driver of the truck was insured.
1:32 am
The police chief or Gray?
1:32 am
The Queen of DC has made just showing up to work a double edge sword. If you chase a car you get fired. If you try to do the right thing and end up making a mistake you get fired. All the citizens who get mad when they see Officers not being proactive can thank "she of the 83% approval rating." The city is getting clobbered by robberies, and Metro PD no longer has the manpower to perform the simplest of law enforcement duties. Those that remain are miserable. The only people that have gotten raises in the last five years are her inner cadre, who dine on steak dinners bought with expense cards while using their departmental ipads. And crazy kathy has a personal message to PERB: "screw you and your rulings."
9:58 am
Lou Cannon why did you lie and tell us we were the real police? And we could carry our glocks off duty in VA and MD? And can drive our cars off duty any where? Man Lou! You screwed us again.... I know I should not have worked for you. I am a loser,and I got locked for you. By the way can I have one of those stolen glocks, radio and assault rifle from the North Beach Police so me and Heath Scott can start a top flight security company like PSPD??? Please. Steve Watkins told me that you had the stolen police equipment via email. Lou while you are jail, please get your black teeth fixed.I will take care of Julie (since her old man left her for being the office slut), Bonnie (Old Road Hog- only married Lou because she was hoping he would die by now) and Fat Christina (when she gets out of drug rehab) in the trailer park. I will have them pass out the KKK flyers.
10:10 am
Looking at all these posts, it looks like the District needs to fire the entire force and start over. Perhaps recruiting ex-police officers from somewhere other than the MPD. Did PSD pick up the bad apples that Ramsey fired when he became Chief of MPD? It seems like it the way they are behaving.
10:32 am
I feel as if I've stepped knee deep into Bizarro World.
WTF is going on in here??
10:47 am
cops suck, especially the dirty double dipping ones
11:32 am
For the members of PSD that posted the trash I read on this blog should be ashamed. If you like Lou or hated him the trash posted here is beneath any law enforcment officer. What do you think the preception of your agency is now? For those of you that cried Lou is a racist and we are now free,I've got some news for you. A/C Parks is going to hold you to the same if not higher standards than Lou did. I worked for and with the man. Throw your race card at him and see where that gets you. When it comes to police work he sees I color and that's blue. Good luck to all you SLAPS.
2:02 pm
Most of the trash that is being posted here is being posted by people who ARE NOT members of PSPD. The trash talk is being posted by disgruntled former employees who have been fired or otherwise separated from the department through their own actions and want to blame it on everyone but themselves.
Funny how Mark Polk says 23 blacks have lawsuits against Lou Cannon for firing them. I've worked at PSPD during the entire Cannon tenure... There haven't been 23 officer fired of any race or even all races combined.
2:54 pm
Awww, so he wants to be able to come and go as he pleases? I'd imagine that James Brady would like to be able to just pick up and go where HE wants at any time, too!
2:55 pm
No way! This guy should never be allowed out or if he is James Brady should be able to us him as a shooting target. Let's see how Hinckley feels about that.
2:55 pm
you do the crime you do all of the time!! no buts!!
2:57 pm
I obviously dont really know what I am talking about here not being privy of the prosecutorial evidence against him, but it seems like this guy doesent have a prayer to be able to get out of this. They seem to have him deadto rights. He had motive, opportunity, a history of this behavior, and a statement of intent which will help get him on a first degree count. And there is no other possible suspect so he is the sole perpatrator. Sounds pretty damning to me. Easy case for the P.A. and a nightmare for the defence!
3:06 pm
This doesn't sound random at all. I can't see two people going into a neighborhood to kill someone on there porch for no reason. Sounds like a hit.
3:07 pm
was good person i will miss him
3:08 pm
Why not boycott all DC Government products and services? From what I read all the workers are somewhat the same. I guess until they get 100 paid holidays and have early closing for bogus snow storms they will not be happy.
3:09 pm
all DC Govt employees are arrogant pricks
3:10 pm
The bigger question is WHY are there made in China for dc government in America? All dc government workers should be MADE IN AMERICA!
3:12 pm
Cut off his hands! This low life should live the rest of his life with a little reminder and a walking example for other's who are thinking about doing commiting the same crime.
3:13 pm
why is he kept discreet we need to know what he looks lik how how ol how he's kept unscene whewwwww...its so sad that the area is in such disstress already but and will u get informed that a person hst stolen outta the store smh their pictures are up trust me go to the corner store each 1 has its own...the point im making is that he didnt deserve to b aloud to get a chance to walk around thinking its okay Only to see how positive a community can be is one if the enforcers were helping us out... no not MPD first
3:15 pm
Cannon is an absolute repugnant egomaniac womanizer... a very rich mobster cop... and a real loser despite all his money and good looks. Yes the FOP building should have been sold, but maybe to Marriott or something.
3:16 pm
Oh my, more trash coming to D.C....gotta wonder who makes these damned decisions...WTH are they thinking? Oh well, certainly he should fit right in with all the other liars, thieves, womanizers, egomaniacs we have here in DC.
3:17 pm
Maybe they'll have show girls, slot machines and change the FOP building to Cannon building.
3:19 pm
I think I would call myself an idiot if I was an officer and did this!!! If you hate your job and need to drink to deal with people... guess what you should get a new one!
3:21 pm
He was a cop, and yes they break laws like everybody else, and he will face the same consequences as anybody else. First offense usually means probation, domestic abuse classes and +$35,000.00 in legal fees. Why care about this anymore than anyone else. I take this stand only b/c he was a cop.
3:22 pm
I wonder if these cops police each other also. They drink at the Leonardtown pub and drive home drunk all the time....
3:23 pm
I hope the city reimburses him for any time off the clock due to his arrest
3:25 pm
Look at this fool why take it when u can go buy it, he could of went down the street 2 dc jail and been harrasment to corectional officrs! happy his dumb @$$ is locked up cus if he harrasment one of my famliy members he wouldnt be in jail 4real. Now he will be a man cant fight.
3:26 pm
You watch 2 much t.v if he uses a public defefender he will get life u only get little to no time when you have a great laywer or he can snitch his way out or the police messed up. Stop watching Nancy Grace you must belive anything look the sky is pink.
3:28 pm
I bet that he has dozens of little kids he made from dozens of women. So sad because those little kids will grow up to be criminals, just like him. What a pity.
3:30 pm
come on MPD I know you can aim better than that. Now we all have to pay for his defense and house him.
3:32 pm
I guess they shouldn't have nolle prosed his attempted murder charge from last year. I'm sure he is a great guy.
3:33 pm
The police are so quick to shoot and kill this is somebody child I don't have to wonder the race of the officers.
3:34 pm
It's called the Blue Wall of Silence. Although many officers will fall back on this security blanket when they make mistakes, please consider that 95% of the time these officers lay their lives on the line for you. Better training and sensitivity can help but it soon wears off after being on the beat. Unfortunately law enforcement must learn to live with Big Brother watching.. It cuts both ways!
3:41 pm
Police officers go to work everyday with body armor on and a gun. Their job is stressful, underpaid, under appreciated and over scrutinized. If criminals didn't have the mindset that they will "get away with it" and had respect for authority, ppl wouldn't be put in this situation. I believe if the police are threatened, they should be able to defend themselves...., AT ANY COST. I know those other people have have families but, the police officers have families too. If those boys families cared so much about their children, they should have been parents and not raised criminals!
3:42 pm
I understand police risk their neck everyday and that's the profession they chose but that doesn't give them the right to hurt a man and violate his free rights. All police dept motto is "to serve and protect" not "harass and beat up"
3:43 pm
All I can say is WOW. Cops need to be watched just like the criminals. But I do know for a fact that we have a lot of really dedicated cops out on the streets. For the honest cops please keep doing a great job.
3:53 pm
That an occifer of the law would betray his trust. Usually it's the younger one they had to hire for "balance". Wonder if this guy was desperate for cash money, divorce, child support, gambling debts,....... Shocked, Shocked I Say (lol)
3:54 pm
crooked cops are like cockroaches; for everyone you can see, there are 99 more in the woodwork.
3:55 pm
really? how much of your day do you spend creating conspiracy theories. The monitor probably has more things going on in there life than figuring out which comments were written by ignorant whites or ignorant blacks and which ones to leave up longer.
3:57 pm
If cannon is guilty, then he will get the same punishment that every other crimanl mastermind gets. He will get probation before judgement, have to go to a domestic violence treatment program, 2 years of supervised probation with the condition he stays drug and alcohol free, and $25,065 in court costs. He will also lose his job and pension. So in most cases he will get the same as every other low budget crimanl mastermind out there, except now, he has street credit.
3:58 pm
Aren't we innocent until proven guilty?
3:59 pm
There are the good and the bad and something in between in every walk of society--no ethnicity, profession, or religion is exempt. This officer's actions are disappointing, but not so much as the racism going on with these comments. Name-calling is childish at best when it comes from a child, but ugly at its worst when it comes from an adult. When is this nation going to grow up as a whole?
4:00 pm
The problem with this is that this officer put the life of so many other officers in jeopardy. The ones who have had his back for the last 14 years.
4:04 pm
I work in dc govirnmint and i cant belive this happened, ive seen him but not talked to him he looks like a nice guy but nobody would of think he could do something like that.
4:08 pm
You all are exactly right. If it were your average everyday Joe, we would have been placed in a county jail the exact minute we were convicted. And we would stay there until we became a ward of the state or as they call it DOC, Dept of Corrections. None of this getting your affairs together and reporting at a later date. When you are normally convicted in court, you dont go out the same door you came in.
4:09 pm
Omg, they need to lock him up already they just playing games like he a famous person or something not realizing he took alot of money and used it for unecessary things.
4:10 pm
I'm sure he paid with his "get out of jail for 2 more weeks" card! Yeah...right, finalizing plans on where to send him my butt, he's paid money to be out for a few more weeks. You get rich with your under the table deals, why the average worker that helped you get rich suffers in a bad economy. Occupy Wallstreet!!!!!
4:11 pm
He should have been remanded to the custody of the US Marshalls upon sentencing!!!
4:13 pm
I am sorry for the loss of your chief, but do you really think it's worth all that tax money to keep a list of people who injure minorities? To you maybe but if you want it maybe you should pay for it. The way to do it is rather than retiring or leaving anything to your children (assuming), leave the money to a fund to create an on-line regestry. Don't saddle the rest of us with your grief and debt. The minority legal defense business is one of the biggest industries in this country, get money from them.
4:21 pm
I'm so sorry this happened. Our chief is like a family member and my heart broke to read the story.
4:22 pm
This is a great idea, but we need to have much stricter laws to keep these abusers behind bars for many many years.
4:24 pm
What needs to be done is to re-open our state mental hospitals,one has to be completely insane to do what this man did. We don't need laws,we need criminals/nuts behind bars where they belong.
4:25 pm
Let's hope it passes in DC for a start, thereby enabling "Big Mo" to build across the country! So very sorry for your loss Big Mo. Truly we all have an opportunity to do good here from these despicable acts.
4:28 pm
Darn. Another fascist shut down of a good ole american business. Human Trafficking is a lie. All these working for cannon are just hard working americans making a living providing a service which is in great demand. Shame on you, mayer greay!
4:30 pm
By the way this is my real name and I live in st Mary's county and if you have something to say about the situation then we can meet up and discuss this on a personal level. Find me on facebook if you want my contact info.
4:31 pm
whoeva u is if u dont know **** dont put **** up here u have nuthing to do with in da 1st place. how would u feel if u were wrongfully accused of some thing. so you shut up boooo!
4:33 pm
Sad for both families
4:34 pm
Don't do the crime if you can't do time.You know he is guilty, guilty, guilty if he didn't do he should not have turned him self in, that's good you live in Calverts county. When they find you was there and you allowed it to happen you going down too, don't run stay there like a man and take it!
4:39 pm
I am also from Miami and previously a fan of cannon...I think the idea is fine..but I am not sure the flags wil;l stay fresh and crunchy if the cops takes too long with the interim chief now!
3:34 pm
Let's all take a moment to pray. Faith heals all. We now all have HOPE. It's about time that CHARITY begin at home.
7:23 pm
Glad to see that fat *ucker go. I know that theif Alberta Holden is glad to see him go ! They need to Fire her Fat *SS next worthless POS !
7:16 pm
Hey I need to borrow some money.... Can anyone spare me some change??? I got LED lights for sale...
1:03 pm
hi just wanting to write a serious concern about 3 of your officers rosalyn james brian davis and possible jazzy they is think i know i saw rosalyn last week and brian davis i reported in richmond virginia about being a member of the kkk grand wizard and the notorous leader of the hart gang and the black panther and my doubles is also the leaders of the hart gang among about 16 or more leaders i was in the caritas program in richmond and i turned them in for hiv transmission and i putting fecal in the food that ws contiminated with virus also penny to could've find out the entire staff of cartis was really from dc any way they lived here before coming richmond virginia ed jenkins to they lied to the churches about a lot of things and stolen to rosalyn i think is cooking for the shelter i was told i was prepared in the kitchen and i looks and tast like illegall drugs was cooked in the food and its been that way every since if yall just can tell by their driver's license from virginina. They also do grand larceny of folks bodies to like the food clothes lord especially the money folks spent and rosalyn loves to shit in peoples faces who dress look better than her and that saves their money in the program and don't put it in escrow thanks
6 top now 13 bottom Thanks Anna Brinkley
current temp resident