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Controversial Corvallis police officer resigns
Officer Dave Cox leaves after six years on the force, currently under internal investigation
Craig Bidiman
Issue date: 11/16/07 Section: News
Corvallis police officer Dave Cox resigned from the force on Nov. 1, 2007 after a formal, paid suspension by the Corvallis Police Department on Sept. 14.
For those students who have come into contact with Cox, CPD's decision carries some weight.
"I was arrested by Cox on April 9 at 3:36 in the morning," said Kellen Pierce, a Portland resident. "He pulled me over for not signaling long enough before changing lanes."
Pierce was in Corvallis the night of his arrest and was visiting friends for a poker night. He was in town for six hours prior to the arrest.
"He claimed to have smelled weed in the car though he found nothing on any of us or in the car," Pierce said.
Pierce's arrest report, filed by Cox, claims his speech was slurred, eyes dilated and bloodshot and there was the presence of a light green coating on his tongue.
A verbatim report was found in connection with Cox only two weeks before his resignation.
"When I went to my first hearing, I was seated in a room with about 25 other people," Pierce said. "After asking around, I found that well over half of them had been arrested by Cox."
Officer Cox has become well known for his increasing number of DUII (Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants) arrests, averaging 20 per month.
Pierce wasn't aware of Officer Cox's reputation in Corvallis.
The number of arrests Officer Cox made was well above the rest of his colleagues, with an accompanying higher percentage of error.
A recipient of the department's Medal of Valor in 2006, Officer Cox had quickly become a model for drunk driving prevention and enforcement.
There were speculations that some of the arrests made may not have been genuine.
"I blew a 0.00 BAC [Blood Alcohol Content] when I was arrested and booked at the Benton County Jail," Pierce said.
"I refused a urine test and was released at 5 a.m., less than 90 minutes after being pulled over."
CPD released documents which show that in a number of Cox's arrests, the persons apprehended had a BAC well below 0.08, Oregon's definition for DUI impairment.
"For the refusal to test, my license was suspended for a year," Pierce said.
"As with the rest of Cox's 0.00 arrests," Pierce said. "I will most likely be left with a DUI arrest on my DMV record."
CPD was unable to release any vital information concerning Officer Cox, but his open cases have been turned over to the Oregon Department of Justice.
Officer Cox did not supply a reason for resigning.
He is currently under internal investigation for undisclosed reasons.
"I hear that Cox is leaving Corvallis," Pierce said. "But with the CPD protecting and defending his actions, I have no other choice but to assume that this behavior is systematic."
"For all intents and purposes, the remaining members of the CPD are Cox themselves."
For those students who have come into contact with Cox, CPD's decision carries some weight.
"I was arrested by Cox on April 9 at 3:36 in the morning," said Kellen Pierce, a Portland resident. "He pulled me over for not signaling long enough before changing lanes."
Pierce was in Corvallis the night of his arrest and was visiting friends for a poker night. He was in town for six hours prior to the arrest.
"He claimed to have smelled weed in the car though he found nothing on any of us or in the car," Pierce said.
Pierce's arrest report, filed by Cox, claims his speech was slurred, eyes dilated and bloodshot and there was the presence of a light green coating on his tongue.
A verbatim report was found in connection with Cox only two weeks before his resignation.
"When I went to my first hearing, I was seated in a room with about 25 other people," Pierce said. "After asking around, I found that well over half of them had been arrested by Cox."
Officer Cox has become well known for his increasing number of DUII (Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants) arrests, averaging 20 per month.
Pierce wasn't aware of Officer Cox's reputation in Corvallis.
The number of arrests Officer Cox made was well above the rest of his colleagues, with an accompanying higher percentage of error.
A recipient of the department's Medal of Valor in 2006, Officer Cox had quickly become a model for drunk driving prevention and enforcement.
There were speculations that some of the arrests made may not have been genuine.
"I blew a 0.00 BAC [Blood Alcohol Content] when I was arrested and booked at the Benton County Jail," Pierce said.
"I refused a urine test and was released at 5 a.m., less than 90 minutes after being pulled over."
CPD released documents which show that in a number of Cox's arrests, the persons apprehended had a BAC well below 0.08, Oregon's definition for DUI impairment.
"For the refusal to test, my license was suspended for a year," Pierce said.
"As with the rest of Cox's 0.00 arrests," Pierce said. "I will most likely be left with a DUI arrest on my DMV record."
CPD was unable to release any vital information concerning Officer Cox, but his open cases have been turned over to the Oregon Department of Justice.
Officer Cox did not supply a reason for resigning.
He is currently under internal investigation for undisclosed reasons.
"I hear that Cox is leaving Corvallis," Pierce said. "But with the CPD protecting and defending his actions, I have no other choice but to assume that this behavior is systematic."
"For all intents and purposes, the remaining members of the CPD are Cox themselves."
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