The leader of the DeKalb County Commission has asked the CEO to terminate Public Safety Director William “Wiz” Miller for improper comments about elected officials.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution obtained a letter sent by Commissioner Larry Johnsonto CEO Burrell Ellis late Wednesday, asking for Miller to be disciplined.
The letter follows a comment Miller made to the AJC, saying he could “could care less” about concerns Johnson expressed regarding Miller’s office. Miller supervises all police, fire and emergency workers in DeKalb.
“As a leader of one third of the county’s workforce, Director Miller’s attacks on the press and elected officials constitute conduct unbecoming of the director's office,” wrote Johnson, the commission’s presiding officer.
Johnson asked Ellis to take “appropriate disciplinary action up to termination” for Miller’s conduct.
Ellis created Miller’s office in 2009 to consolidate police and fire administrative functions. At the time, the CEO said more officers would be moved to the street.
This week, commissioners said they have not seen an increase in officers on the street and are trying to justify Miller's $150,000 salary when the county is facing an estimated $28 million shortfall.
Miller’s comments on Tuesday only added to those concerns, commissioners said.
In his letter, Johnson said he has seen Miller hold officers to “the highest level of conduct” and he expects the CEO, who supervises Miller, to do the same.
“Tolerating these actions from a high ranking official such as Director Miller would set a bad example for all county employees and harm the working relationship between the commission and all county staff,” Johnson wrote.
Miller did not immediately return phone calls nor an e-mail Wednesday.
A spokesman for the CEO said Ellis and Miller have not seen the letter yet and declined to comment further.
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