Detroit City Councilwoman Mary Waters has fired her community liaison, Reggie Davis, after an investigation revealed that he and former council president Charles Pugh posed as incoming staff for the Ombudsman Office to gain access to sensitive information.
According to a report from the Detroit Office of Inspector General, Davis and Pugh represented themselves as part of the team preparing to take over the department when they contacted WingSwept, a vendor supplying software to the Ombudsman's Office. This was done in an attempt by Davis to gather information for his potential role at the Ombudsman Office, which requires approval from two-thirds of the City Council.
The investigation began after then-Ombudsman Bruce Simpson learned of the contacts and found that Davis "abused his position" to obtain the information. The report stated that Davis and Pugh identified themselves as part of the incoming staff during phone calls and a video meeting, but this was later deemed to be an abuse of authority by the OIG.
Reggie Davis, who has previously been accused of harassing women, had initially sought to use the information he gathered for his potential role at the Ombudsman Office. His attorney argued that Davis's actions were not an abuse of authority but rather "over-enthusiastic preparation" for his anticipated role. However, the OIG disagreed and found Davis to have "falsely presented himself as part of the incoming team and abused his position by using his title to improperly access information."
The city is facing criticism over its handling of Pugh's past sex crimes convictions, which included five and a half years in prison for third-degree criminal sexual conduct. It remains unclear why Davis was working with Pugh.
Davis has been fired from the City Council staff without comment, while Waters stated that she made the decision after reviewing the OIG report and conducting her own assessment of the situation.
According to a report from the Detroit Office of Inspector General, Davis and Pugh represented themselves as part of the team preparing to take over the department when they contacted WingSwept, a vendor supplying software to the Ombudsman's Office. This was done in an attempt by Davis to gather information for his potential role at the Ombudsman Office, which requires approval from two-thirds of the City Council.
The investigation began after then-Ombudsman Bruce Simpson learned of the contacts and found that Davis "abused his position" to obtain the information. The report stated that Davis and Pugh identified themselves as part of the incoming staff during phone calls and a video meeting, but this was later deemed to be an abuse of authority by the OIG.
Reggie Davis, who has previously been accused of harassing women, had initially sought to use the information he gathered for his potential role at the Ombudsman Office. His attorney argued that Davis's actions were not an abuse of authority but rather "over-enthusiastic preparation" for his anticipated role. However, the OIG disagreed and found Davis to have "falsely presented himself as part of the incoming team and abused his position by using his title to improperly access information."
The city is facing criticism over its handling of Pugh's past sex crimes convictions, which included five and a half years in prison for third-degree criminal sexual conduct. It remains unclear why Davis was working with Pugh.
Davis has been fired from the City Council staff without comment, while Waters stated that she made the decision after reviewing the OIG report and conducting her own assessment of the situation.
I'm all about holding our leaders accountable for their actions, but I gotta wonder... was this whole thing just a massive overreaction? I mean, I get it, having some shady past doesn't automatically disqualify someone from working in city government. But at the same time, it's not like Reggie Davis was getting away scot-free either. Five and a half years in prison is no joke! 
Can't believe what's goin on in Detroit right now... one of these city council members is literally cheatin' to get ahead. I mean, Reggie Davis think he's slick tryin to pose as some new staff just to get info for a job? And Charles Pugh too, who's got a history of sex crimes? It's all just a mess 
. You can't trust people in power when they're not held accountable for their actions 
. I guess Mary Waters finally took action after all the investigation came out... good job on makin' some tough decisions, but still wish there was more transparency from the start 
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. I guess you could say Reggie Davis got caught playing dress-up for his potential job at the Ombudsman Office . But honestly, the real question is what was going on with Charles Pugh's past and why is that getting swept under the rug? The city needs to do a better check on their staff members before they get appointed to high-profile roles. And btw, WingSwept vendor software sounds like some cool tech 
. Anyway, glad City Councilwoman Mary Waters made a move to fire Davis - accountability is key 
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... like, newsflash Reggie, your actions spoke louder than any job title. This whole thing shows us that accountability matters and we all need to be held to a higher standard 
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... so yeah, let this be a lesson to us all: our actions have consequences and we should always strive to do better 
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this is so not okay at all! how could they even think it was okay to use their power like that? i mean reggie davis has already been accused of harassing women, and now we find out he was trying to get ahead by lying about being part of the ombudsman office team 
i'm so glad councilwoman waters took action, even if it was a little late...
. Reggie Davis's actions were not only a breach of trust but also a huge letdown for everyone who puts their faith in public officials. The fact that he had previously been accused of harassing women and still managed to manipulate his way into getting sensitive information is just mind-boggling 
. It's a slap in the face to all the hardworking public servants who actually do their jobs with integrity and transparency.
. Otherwise, we'll just keep seeing more Reggie Davis's and Pugh's ruining people's trust in government 
and i'm not surprised it was exposed now that Reggie Davis has been accused of harassing women. anyway, it's good that Mary Waters took action and held someone accountable for their actions 