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Former Safety Manager Calls For Vigil To Step Down

DENVER (CBS4) - Former Denver Manager of Safety Fidel "Butch" Montoya has called on the current Deputy Manager of Safety, Jess Vigil, to resign after a CBS4 Investigation uncovered online comments from Vigil's daughter saying her father hates the police officers whose disciplinary cases he is ruling on.

"He needs to resign, thank the citizens of Denver for his opportunity to work for them, and walk away," said Montoya, who served as Denver's Manager of Safety from 1994 until 2000.

"His position is one where there can be no doubt or suspicion about his findings if a bias does in fact exist," said Montoya.

Jess Vigil
Jess Vigil (credit: Denver Manager of Safety's Office)

Montoya's comments came after a CBS4 Investigation Thursday revealed Vigil's grown daughter, Elena, recently posted comments on social media about her father and his work.

"He's the deputy director of safety for Denver and investigates DPD and recommends disciplinary," wrote Elena Vigil, "As a former Chicano rights activist and hater of police he obviously hates his job because he has to follow the rules and they're always skewed toward cops."

RELATED: My Dad Is 'Hater of Police' Says Daughter Of Top Denver Safety Official

Jess Vigil, who is supposed to be impartial in his disciplinary rulings, released a statement saying:

I understand the concern my daughter's comments have raised and I have admonished her for making erroneous statements for public consumption. I want to be clear the comments do not reflect my views and I trust my 20 years of experience and record as a former District and County Court judge, coupled with my three years as Deputy Director of Safety, speaks for itself.

CBS4 attempted to interview Vigil but a spokesperson for the Manager of Safety's office said he would not speak to CBS4 and would not comment beyond the written release.

But Montoya suggested Vigil's daughter's comments cast a pall over all of Vigil's past and future disciplinary rulings.

"Any damage he may have caused by what his grown daughter claims ... and because of that deep bias against police officers, his disciplinary rulings may be suspect as well. If the Mayor and Manager [of Safety] do not want another lingering controversy between them and his administration, accept Vigil's 'resignation' and move on," stated Montoya.

Vigil's boss, the Manager of Safety, Stephanie O'Malley,  attempted to tamp down the controversy Thursday.

She released a statement that said:

Upon becoming aware of the message Mr. Vigil's daughter posted, I took the time to confer with him directly and I am fully satisfied that her statements in no way reflect his sentiments.

According to the Manager of Safety's Office, they are, "responsible for issuing fair and unbiased discipline decisions on behalf of the Fire, Police and Sheriff Departments."

Nick Rogers, president of Denve's police union, also called on Vigil to step down after the CBS4 report.

"This calls into question all the cases he has ruled on," said Rogers. "There's no way he can sit in that position."

Rogers said he believed Elena Vigil had articulated her father's "true feelings."

CBS4 Investigator Brian Maass has been with the station more than 30 years uncovering waste, fraud and corruption. Follow him on Twitter @Briancbs4.

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