Atlanta cop files complaint against police chief

An Atlanta police officer has filed an ethics complaint against Police Chief Richard Pennington, contending the chief made on-duty motorcycle officers escort members of his Corvette club through the city last summer, the police union said.

Atlanta ethics officer Ginny Looney confirmed Thursday that a complaint was filed against Pennington on Aug. 22, but she would not discuss its details. She said an investigation into the complaint has begun.

Pennington would not comment on an open investigation, said Sgt. Lisa Keyes, an Atlanta police spokeswoman.

The officer who filed the complaint did so anonymously out of fear of retribution, said police Sgt. Scott Kreher, president of an Atlanta police union.

The escort incident happened on July 12, Kreher said. He said Pennington owns a Corvette and is a member of the United Council of Corvette Clubs, which describes itself on a Web site as the premier African-American Corvette club.

Kreher said the club’s members came to Atlanta for its week-long annual convention and stayed at a hotel south of the city, near the airport.

On July 12, Pennington had a handful of officers escort the club members, driving their Corvettes, from the hotel to Lenox Square Mall in Buckhead, Kreher said.

Pennington was with the group, was not on duty and was driving his Corvette, Kreher said, adding that the escort required about two hours of the officers’ time.