Both of Coquille’s candidates for mayor say they are running because the city needs to move forward. But people seem to be talking less about the future than about the past — specifically, the incumbent’s history as a police officer.

Three years ago, the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training rejected Steve Britton’s attempt to become a certified police officer. The reason was a 1981 misconduct conviction that he says was a misunderstanding. Challenger Mike Reaves, the former police chief, contends Britton’s history affects his ability to lead.

Coquille and its police department have traveled a bumpy road. An arrest gone wrong left a man paralyzed and put the police department under a microscope in early 2008. Reaves and the department were the center of a fractious community debate.

Reaves and Britton both say the incident could have been handled better. Each blames the other that it wasn’t.

Reaves retired as chief during the summer, and the election is shaping up as a grudge match. Whispers about Britton’s history have moved front and center in the campaign.

The records start in 1981. The Cannon Beach Police Department filed two complaints against Britton, alleging he had taken items that belonged in the evidence room. In May of that year, Britton accepted a plea agreement, pleading guilty to one of the two charges. (See related story, Page A8.)

Cannon Beach wasn’t the first place from which Britton made a quick exit. He was fired from his first job at the Coos County Sheriff’s Office in 1979 after less than a year, according to Britton’s employment history at the DPSST.

Almost 30 years later, Britton says the Cannon Beach problem was a mistake — an accident.

He said he had left the items in a utility box in his police cruiser and had forgotten they were there. In a beach community, officers end up collecting misplaced items. These two got lost, he said. Britton mailed the camera back, but complaints were filed anyway.

“The DA wanted to make it a real issue,” Britton said.

At the time, Britton said, he thought he was done with law enforcement. He agreed to the plea bargain and left the area.

After he returned to Coquille in 1991, his opinion about law enforcement changed. He served as a reserve officer in three different departments, starting in Coquille in 1993. He left Coquille in 1997, when Reaves came on board as chief.

“There was a change in direction and attitude,” Britton said.

He moved to the Coos County Sheriff’s Office, where in 2001 he applied for a code enforcement position. A background investigation turned up the 1981 conviction, which Britton had not disclosed.

Sheriff Andy Jackson wrote in an affidavit to DPSST that he told Britton he didn’t think he was certifiable and removed him from the reserve program.

Britton contends there was more to it than that.

“Didn’t support him in the election,” Britton said. “That made for some bitter blood.”

He moved on again, this time to the Myrtle Point Police Department, where he became a reserve sergeant. Then in 2002, while serving in Myrtle Point, Britton was elected mayor of Coquille. 

In 2004, Myrtle Point promoted him to a full-time position. Unlike the reserves, that job required state certification. He said he disclosed his conviction to Police Chief Rock Rakosi, who Britton said told him it shouldn’t disqualify him. Britton said he also talked to an attorney about having the records expunged, but was told not to worry about it.

 “I didn’t follow through,” he said.

In early 2005, Britton applied for training at the DPSST. On his application he disclosed a 1974 criminal mischief conviction, but nothing about his termination from the Coos County Sheriff’s Office or the 1981 conviction.

A background investigation turned up both incidents. According to Oregon’s administrative rules, either one automatically disqualifies someone for certification. The investigation report also indicated DPSST staff concluded Britton had been untruthful on his application and in subsequent interviews.

Britton said the conviction had been so long ago, he thought he had grounds to challenge the decision. But at 50 years old, he didn’t want to pursue it.

He left the Myrtle Point department in 2005 and turned his focus on his business, Capco Metals.

Reaves said he is not certain of the seriousness of the charge, but it amounts to a violation of an oath of office. He thinks it affects Britton’s ability to lead, but voters will have to decide for themselves, he said.

“A violation of an oath of office is something we should all take seriously.”

Reaves himself doesn’t have any record of complaints since he has served in Oregon, said Jeanine Hohn, spokeswoman for DPSST.

Britton, having served six years as mayor, argues his past has no bearing on his fitness for office.

“I have proved myself,”  Britton said. “There is not a question of my leadership ability.”