Former Lathrop Police Chief Ray Bechler – who was fired late last month – did not go quietly into that good night.

On Monday, Bechler stepped to the lectern inside of the council chambers at Lathrop City Hall and laid out a scorching and scathing indictment against Lathrop City Manager Steve Salvatore.

He alleged Salvatore pressured him to fire personnel, undermined him to subordinates and to members of the community, and became irate when he was denied unsupervised access to the police department due to security protocols issued by the Department of Justice.

The City of Lathrop announced late last month that Bechler’s time with the city had come to a close – appointing Stephen Sealy to the position of Interim Police Chief effective immediately. No reason was given in the release issued by the city.

Holding his notes in his hand, Bechler filled in the gaps for the council and the standing-room crowd – many of whom would rise to give both Bechler and his wife Debbie a standing ovation – about what led up to his dismissal.

According to Bechler’s comments, Salvatore’s termination of his job after two years came abruptly – claiming that he was called to what he thought was going to be a budget meeting when he was blindsided and told that if he didn’t resign he was going to be fired.

He said that his termination letter cited “incompatibility of management styles” and noted how Salvatore had “lost faith over your leadership of the police department.”

While Bechler said that he would have accepted the first reason, the others listed in the letter didn’t sit well with him.

“I believed that the Lathrop Police Department was thriving, as evidenced by the constant positive feedback from the council, community groups, and the public at large,” Bechler said in his comments. “Internally, judging by staff members here tonight, I don’t think I need to say any more on the effectiveness of my leadership.”

In his nearly 15 minute long address to the council – Bechler exceeded the 5 minute time limit allotted to speakers, but was not stopped by the council – the 36-year law enforcement veteran spoke openly about a number of issues that had created an atmosphere of distrust that even prompted him to consider resigning just months in his employment with the city.

In one instance, Bechler said, an employee who had just been hired was approached by a city employee and asked to report on information about the happenings inside of the police department building.

When that same employee was asked not to tell Bechler that they were being asked for that information, they approached him and informed him on what was taking place – making that employee feel like they would be betraying him if they did what they were asked.

He also cited how irate Salvatore became at him when he denied him unsupervised access to the police department – a decision he made based on what he said are protocols set in place by the Department of Justice to safeguard computer databases that contain sensitive information that are shared amongst law enforcement agencies.

Bechler said that if audited and it was discovered that somebody had access to those systems, the city could potentially lose their ability to use those resources – severely handcuffing the agency’s ability to operate effectively.

As a result of what has transpired, Bechler said, an employee that was just recently offered a promotion to sergeant turned down the offer out of concern about what was going on and how it may affect their career if they were to rise through the ranks in the current climate.

And the fact that he’s the second law enforcement officer to step to the lectern and inform the council about issues with Salvatore in the last three years was not lost on him, either.

“About 2.5 years ago the sheriff approached you at this very same podium – he told you that he refused to work with Steve because he didn’t trust him,” Bechler said. “And now, standing before you again, is another law enforcement official, making the same claim.

“My experience working with the city manager was laden with undermining, distrust, and intimidation.”

And Bechler had support in the audience.

While a number of current Lathrop police officers attended the meeting in support of the fired chief, Detective Ashlyn Howard stepped to the lectern and detailed how instrumental Bechler was in helping the department coalesce after being started from scratch – with the majority of officers transferring from other agencies and having to form a cohesive team.

He also received support from first speaker Jack Varrella, Christina Laughlin, and others who packed into the council chambers.

Once the council concluded public comment it went straight into the consent calendar.

Mayor Sonny Dhaliwal addressed the matter at the conclusion of the meeting when he cited the right of people to share their beliefs and their opinions respectfully in an open forum.

To contact Bulletin reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.