Dallas HERO is the group associated with hotelier Monty Bennett that collected enough signatures to force the inclusion of three city of Dallas charter amendments on your November ballot. To read more about this complicated issue and why the majority of the Council tried to thwart the proposed amendments, read our Bethany Erickson’s reporting.
Today I want to draw your attention to something far simpler to understand. It’s Dallas HERO’s website and the image of three Dallas officers featured thereon. One of the HERO amendments would require the city to hire about 900 more cops and raise their pay, which outgoing Police Chief Eddie García has said would be nigh impossible. (Again, read Bethany for more on that.) So the natural conclusion when you visit the HERO site, upon seeing that photo, is that the Dallas Police Department supports what HERO is doing—at least when it comes to the amendment concerning cops. In fact, if you’ve been paying attention to this issue, then you know that Dallas HERO’s executive director, Pete Marocco, has said, “We enjoy our collaborative relationship with the DPD and [Dallas Police Association] …”
But here’s the deal: the DPD and DPA both say they are not collaborating with Dallas HERO. And that photo of the three officers on the HERO website was swiped off the DPD’s site without permission from the department or the consent of the three officers pictured (each of whom can be identified by name tags).
I asked DPD about the image and its provenance. A spokesperson emailed the following: “Per our Code of Conduct, DPD employees may not engage in political activities while on duty or in uniform. It’s been determined there was no violation of department policy by any of the officers and the photo was retrieved from the Department’s public website.”
What the DPD was saying was that they can’t control the use of the photo. It was first posted here, to promote the department’s volunteers in patrol program. That image belongs to the public, just like so many other work products from a public agency. HERO didn’t break any laws or violate any copyright by using the image. They simply did something that was very uncollaborative. And misleading.
I asked DPD if I could talk to the officers in the photo. I guess it’s possible that even though the officers didn’t know their photo was going to be used this way, they might, by coincidence, personally support HERO’s efforts. The department emailed in response: “We respectfully decline. Thank you.”
I emailed Marocco to ask about the image; if I hear back from him, I’ll update this post.
UPDATE (3:20 p.m.) Bethany received an email at 2:30 from Pete Marocco. The email contained an attached PDF letter that was addressed to Christine Allison, who owns D Magazine. Above the salutation, Marocco wrote “Re: Timmy’s toilet paper.” The letter was CCed to other media members in town. Here is the entire text of that letter, with my comments:
Tim Rogers’s obsession with a particular hotelier is of no relevance or concern to me, but I encourage you to get Mr. Rogers help with this unhealthy fixation that he mis-projects on others, like our Dallas resident-driven petition with 170,000 signatures for better city security and accountability.
I do however take issue with his lies in propaganda he printed today. First, Mr. Rogers has never emailed me as he misrepresents—not about a public photo used by Downtown Dallas Inc. 45 minutes before his article, not about anything else—ever. [I used the email pete@dallashero.org. Marocco used that address Monday to email business leaders in Dallas about what Marocco said were “myths” concerning HERO’s amendments. In fact, Marocco himself sent email to that address so that he could blind CC the business leaders. I wrote twice to that address; the email didn’t bounce. Marocco’s email today was sent from pete.marocco@dallashero.org. As for DDI, it does appear to have used the same image in an effort to promote National Night Out, which is October 1. Unlike HERO’s operation, that is apolitical.] I do not have his email, and do not care to engage with him. Your magazine has my email because you have previously quoted me from it.
Second, Mr. Rogers’s statement that we’ve not spoke [sic] with the police is also untrue. I’ve met with the DPA many times, other local police associations, and am meeting with another one tomorrow. [Speaking with someone isn’t the same as collaborating. For example, Monty Bennett and I have spoken to each other; we’ve never collaborated, though.] I’ve engaged with senior leaders to hear their ideas, spoken and listened to officers at organizations, where I am happy to field questions about implementation. We love, trust and support our Police! [Same.]
Since Mr. Rogers either struggles with reality or uses “D” for his nonsense personal vendettas, harassment and propaganda, I have included journalists, including one of your own, to show regardless of his lies, your ‘magazine’ did receive this response. Please cease your propagandist lies about Dallas HERO and on November 5, vote FOR Propositions S, T & U!
Please govern yourselves accordingly.
cc. Everton Bailey, Dallas Morning News
Nathan Collins, KERA
Patrick Hauf, Dallas Express
Bethany Erickson, D Magazine
Jilian Nachtigal, Oak Cliff Advocate
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