A report detailing the findings of a July 18 incident involving former Binghamton Police Chief Joseph Zikuski was released last week.

In July, the city of Binghamton hired Lippes Mathias LLP, a legal firm based in Buffalo, New York, to lead an independent third-party investigation into the incident. Zikuski, who resigned before the findings could be released, was placed on administrative leave on July 20 after his girlfriend, Susan Rice, 44, was arrested on charges of trespass, harassment and endangering the welfare of a child.

“The public release of this independent report — as promised — and the former Chief’s resignation earlier this week brings closure to this matter,” Mayor Jared Kraham said in an Oct. 9 press release. “This was a necessary and important step to ensure accountability and transparency. As I’ve said before, New York State Civil Service Law will guide the appointment of a new permanent chief of police, which is a tested civil service position.”

The firm’s investigation looked into relevant records from the Binghamton Police Department, including Zikuski’s personnel file, police reports about Rice’s arrest, the department’s policy manual and the city’s employee handbook. Avalon, a digital forensics vendor, analyzed Zikuski’s city-issued phone and tablet. Interviews were conducted with Zikuski and individuals who interacted with him between July 18, the date of the incident, and July 22.

On July 18, Rice reportedly approached two teenage boys on the porch of a home in Johnson City. After making inflammatory comments like “What do you do, Section 8?” and saying “We are the police,” Rice walked onto the porch and attempted to hit both teenagers. The younger, 16-year-old boy then punched Rice in the face, and she was led away from the scene by Zikuski.

According to the report, Rice’s comments were “demeaning” and “could be construed as being racially motivated.”

The report also detailed Zikuski’s actions after the incident. According to the investigation, after a video circulated on social media of the altercation, Zikuski chose not to inform Kraham of his interaction with Johnson City law enforcement. When Kraham reached out to Zikuski on July 20, he told Kraham the incident was not a “big deal” and that he had not initiated contact with law enforcement, only to change his story after being pressed. Kraham then placed Zikuski on administrative leave.

After the altercation, Zikuski called Brent Dodge, the Johnson City police chief, and sent him text messages describing the incident, along with photos of Rice’s injuries.

“These actions raised concerns about Chief Zikuski’s inconsistent statements and the appearance of him attempting to interfere with a criminal investigation,” the report read. “Making inconsistent statements as part of an investigation and attempting to interfere with a criminal investigation are violations of BPD policies.”

Upon being placed on leave, Zikuski was informed that he would need to return his city-issued property, including keys, a cell phone and a tablet. With assistance from Rice, he researched how to “wipe clean” his cell phone before administering factory resets to both devices on July 21.

When interviewed, Zikuski claimed that he had personal information on the devices, but later admitted that his actions “could give the impression of wrongdoing or attempting to cover up wrongdoing.”

“A reasonable person could conclude that these actions were designed to frustrate this investigation and rise to the level of gross mishandling of government records,” the report read.

Zikuski also violated other department policies, including storing a personal firearm in his office and failing to report a change in residence.

Attached to the end of the report were accounts from Zikuski, Kraham, Deputy Mayor Megan Heiman and Jessica Novobilski, administrative assistant to Zikuski. During his interview, Zikuski said Rice was intoxicated at the time of the incident and that “a history of ongoing tensions” existed between her and the teenagers.

The report also listed relevant policies from the police department and the city’s code of ethics and employee handbook that were important to Zikuski’s resignation. These included sections on abuse of position, misleading and untruthful performance, failure to report criminal involvement and unbecoming conduct.

Since Zikuski retired before the investigation concluded, no civil service processes to remove him from his position are available. The report also did not provide any legal recommendations.

“That said, the Chief’s voluntary termination of employment with the City should not affect disclosure of the investigation’s findings and publication of the circumstances surrounding the incident that perhaps contributed to his decision to retire,” the report’s conclusion read. “Moreover, at the onset of this investigation, the Mayor promised to make the investigative findings by the Firm available for public consumption.”

“Under these circumstances, despite Chief Zikuski’s resignation, this report and its findings serve as a valuable reminder of the standards of conduct that are expected of those serving in positions of leadership in the Binghamton Police Department,” the report continued.