Each holiday season, Akron-area officers raise money to take hundreds of children shopping for toys and gifts they otherwise couldn’t afford.
The actions of one officer, who was convicted Thursday of stealing from Shop With a Cop, however, put the future of the program in jeopardy.
Summit County law enforcement agencies regrouped after former Richfield Officer Michael Simmons’ arrest in May to decide whether the tradition would continue.
The answer is: yes and no.
A group of law enforcement agencies in the northern part of the county are continuing the annual tradition under the Shop With a Cop name, while a second group in the central and southern portion of the county have started a new program called Christmas With a Cop. Norton has joined a few other police departments that are doing their own versions of the program. And, a few departments, including Richfield, Simmons’ former employer, aren’t participating.
“Michael Simmons gave us a huge black eye,” said Cuyahoga Falls Officer Don Patterson, who is helping with the original Shop With a Cop program. “It’s not insurmountable. Cops stealing from kids — it doesn’t get much worse than that.”
Simmons, 42, of Stow, was sentenced to two years of probation and ordered to pay $15,000 restitution after pleading guilty to grand theft, a fourth-degree felony. Investigators think Simmons actually improperly spent more than $26,000 from 2010 to 2016 on personal items, including sporting-event tickets, electronics, clothing, tools and gift cards.
Simmons, who was fired from the Richfield Police Department, was among the local officers who started Shop With a Cop in 2003. The effort grew each year, reaching a peak in 2013 when 40 law enforcement agencies assisted about 500 children. Last year, officers from about 24 departments helped approximately 300 kids.
The law enforcement agencies that are having events this year are holding them Dec. 10. The agencies have held fundraisers and will continue selling raffle tickets next week — available at each department — to provide $100 gift cards and breakfast to local children. Officers also will give the kids a lights-and-sirens procession to a local store.
Northern Summit
Twelve law enforcement agencies have remained part of the original Shop With a Cop program.
The agencies are Boston Heights, Cuyahoga Falls, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Munroe Falls, Ohio State Highway Patrol, Peninsula, Silver Lake, Stow, Summa, Summit County Metro Parks, Summit County Sheriff’s Office and Twinsburg.
Falls officer Patterson said better accounting practices have been put in place to prevent a recurrence of what happened with Simmons. For example, he said, the department’s Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) has a Shop With a Cop account and only the FOP treasurer can put money in or write checks from the account.
“There’s a lot more checks and balances,” Patterson said. “We know we’re under the microscope.”
The group will take about 150 children shopping this year. Patterson, whose department is sponsoring 15 kids this year, recalled how he and another officer shopped with children one year whose mother had died that Thanksgiving.
“They needed to know someone cared,” he said. “It’s a special thing for the kids.”
Southern Summit
Another group of law enforcement agencies in the central and southern part of the county have created their own program this year, which they are calling Christmas With a Cop.
“We didn’t want to use the same organization name,” said University of Akron Officer Pam Helmick. “We’re not going with them.”
The agencies in the group are Akron, Copley, Fairlawn, the Summit County Sheriff’s Office (with deputies taking part in two programs this year) and UA.
Helmick said the agencies had been thinking about breaking off from the northern group for a while.
“It got a little big,” she said. “We decided this is better for the kids. We can control it more.”
The group, which will assist about 80 kids this year, has applied for nonprofit 501(c)(3) status through the state.
Norton
Norton is joining other departments, including neighboring Barberton, to do their own shopping events.
“We’re excited,” said Officer Kevin Starling. “We had kind of here and there dabbled and discussed this. Michael Simmons was the catalyst that caused a lot of officers to say, ‘Let’s do our own thing.’ ”
Starling said taking kids from the southern to the northern part of the county was difficult. He said the department last year participated with the group in Stow in the morning, but then wrapped presents and served kids lunch in Norton.
Starling, a Norton officer since 1999, said the event is just as fun for officers as it is for kids.
“I’ve seen the most hard-nosed, gruff-talking cops just melt that day,” he said.
Not participating
Sagamore Hills and Richfield are among the local agencies not participating in Shop With a Cop this year.
Sagamore Hills Chief David Hayes said Shop With a Cop organizers wanted the township to sell raffle tickets, deposit the funds into a township account and write a check to the program. Hayes said the fiscal officer wasn’t comfortable with this approach. In the past, the department sold tickets and handed over the money.
Hayes said he is disappointed the department can’t participate and in Simmons’ actions.
“In my profession, I don’t think highly of anyone involved in any criminal activities,” said Hayes, an officer for 32 years.
Richfield Chief Kevin Morgan said his department may sponsor a few families this year and provide them with items they need. He’s hoping, though, to eventually rejoin Shop With a Cop — and to regain the public’s trust.
“We all look bad,” Morgan said. “We want to rebuild our reputation.”
Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705, swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com and on Twitter: @swarsmithabj .