Patti Bates

This past October, Yellow Springs Officer Richard Neel was pressured to resign from the Yellow Springs Police Department. It was sketched to look like the YSPD did its job by removing an officer that was found to be unfit for Yellow Spring’s expectations. But Neel should never have been hired in the first place.

In March of 2013, Neel was hired on as a guard at the Montgomery County Prison. According to Neel’s Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) file[1], he was fired in September 2013 for fleeing into the woods from the police after stealing from the Huber Heights Meijer.

Editors Note: The Mockingbird's ongoing investigation into the YSPD uncovered serious problems and possible theft of wages. This was detailed in a previous article. In addition to publishing the article, we sent copies to every member of council, the village manager and every member of the Justice System Task force seeking comment on the record. Only Judith Hempfling chose to respond with a statement about looking into the matter.