[August 26, 2011] Police chief returns to duty Thursday Tweet Aug 24, 2011 (Orland Press Register - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Orland Police Chief Paula Carr will be back in uniform Thursday morning, according to a statement released today from City Manager Paul Poczobut. "Discipline has been imposed, but due to this being a personnel matter, no details of the discipline will be released," Poczobut said in the brief media statement. A phone call to Carr was not immediately returned today. Carr has been on paid administrative leave since May 26 when she admitted taking $1,300 from the department's K-9 Unit fundraising efforts to purchase a horse for herself. The funds were paid back the next day. In a media statement issued after news of her suspension broke, Carr admitted using "very poor judgment," but adamantly denied wrongdoing. To avoid conflicts, the Tehama County Sheriff's Office conducted the internal investigation for the department and delivered its findings to Poczobut on Aug. 5. Poczobut delayed announcing his decision to retain Carr on multiple occasions without explanation, citing confidential personnel laws each time. "Chief Carr has done an outstanding job to improve communications between the Police Department, the citizens of Orland, local schools and the community as a whole," Poczobut said Wednesday. The fallout of Carr's admitted actions reportedly hampered departmental fundraising efforts and appears to have severely shaken police morale. Officer Sean Johnson, president of the Orland police union, on Tuesday acknowledged the officers "don't necessarily support the decision" to retain Carr as chief, but declined to comment further. "This was not our decision, but we have to live with it," Johnson said Tuesday. Johnson did say the union may take some type of unspecified formal action protesting the chief's return, but refused to elaborate. Further complicating the issue is the still-pending report from the state Justice Department that is supposed to determine if Carr's admitted action constituted criminal conduct. District Attorney Robert J. Maloney said in a recent interview that he is still waiting for that report, but has been given no timetable for when it may be completed. Maloney was not immediately available for comment today. Carr has been paid about $19,000 since her suspension, based on an annual salary of annual salary of $76,125, according to city records. Public reaction over the fundraising incident has been a mixed bag of public outrage, with some calling for Carr to be charged with embezzling public funds, to support for the chief's early acknowledgment of her mistake. Carr is expected to report for duty at 9 a.m. Thursday. Contact Rob Parsons at 934-6800 or [email protected]. ___ (c)2011 the Orland Press Register (Willows, Calif.) Visit the Orland Press Register (Willows, Calif.) at www.orland-press-register.com Distributed by MCT Information Services [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]