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Resident accuses officers of escalating incidents; chief says complaint under review
Summary
At Plain City Council, visitor Eric Medachi said three officers and a supervisor escalated multiple incidents and failed to help with a parking dispute; Police Chief McKe said he reviewed body-camera footage, confirmed an investigation and said he would support officers until proven otherwise.
Eric Medachi, a visitor to the March 23 Plain City Council meeting, told the council he has filed written complaints against three officers and a supervisor, alleging they “called me a child,” ignored him and escalated a tense situation rather than deescalating it.
Medachi said officers refused to help locate an owner of an unoccupied truck blocking the road and would not enforce a private-property request to move vehicles even after the property owner, “Mr. Troder,” told a driver not to park there. “They heard explicit instruction from a private property owner … and then told the person parking the car not to listen to him and go ahead and park there,” he said.
The remarks prompted an on‑the‑record response from Chief McKe of the Plain City Police Department. McKe said he reviewed body‑camera video and is overseeing an investigation. He told the council the department will act if officers are found at fault but also defended his staff’s overall professionalism: “I will back them 100% until they’re proven wrong,” he said, adding that discipline would follow if the review finds misconduct.
On the specific parking issue, McKe told council members that the department’s authority is limited on private property: officers can ask people to move but cannot tow on private property without owner authorization. He said he watched the video “first thing this morning” and that the department is continuing its review.
Council members did not take formal action during the public session. Mayor and staff directed residents to bring complaint details to Administrator Miss Lupton or to Chief McKe for follow‑up so the investigation can proceed. The public portion of the meeting concluded before the council went into executive session on unrelated economic development business.
