Former Gainesville Police Department Lt. Bill Billings has finally faced the music.
Well, at least partially.
If he was facing "Sgt. Pepper/s Lonely Hearts Club Band," he would have to own up to Mr. Kite before the needle of judgment was removed from atop his head.
For those who don/t remember, Billings was the subject of an internal investigation in February when his fellow officers reported that he was soliciting prostitutes while on the job.
The investigation revealed, however, that he also committed payroll fraud that amounted to just more than $5,000. Billings was supposedly "recruiting" officers in other cities and was getting paid overtime to do so. It turns out that what he was doing on the city/s dime was closer to giving local prostitutes a shot of his love.
After seven months of investigations (oh, bureaucrats), Lt. Billings has finally been sentenced. According to Alligator archives, State Attorney Bill Cervone said Billings would face up to five years in prison for felony theft charges and up to a year for prostitution charges. So what did he get? The full six years? A three-year compromise?
Nope. Billings faces 24 months of probation. Hardly hard time if you ask us. Billings does, however, have to pay a restitution charge of almost $15,000.
Additionally, he loses certain rights due to his convicted felon status. However, nowhere in the sentencing does it address the fact that Billings solicited prostitutes. They got one thing right with making him pay the restitution but also something very wrong by not addressing the prostitution.
Not to mention that two of the women who testified against Billings were 13 and 14 when they were solicited. No commentary is really needed there, but it does hammer home the point that Billings needs to face a punishment more serious than probation. Sleeping with a 13-year-old is heinous. Doing it with money stolen from the city of Gainesville is ridiculous. But, what/s even more henious and ridiculous is when it/s utterly ignored.
Billings/ former cohort, Dave Reveille, faces hard prison time. Reveille was the officer who not only had sex with prostitutes while on the job, but did so forcibly. Obviously, rape is much more serious than "merely" soliciting, so the guy definitely deserves it.
However, Reveille only got in trouble for it at the same time Billings/ investigation started. A previous investigation occurred in 2005 but was apparently dropped and forgotten.
This story hasn/t stolen our innocence (you know, like how Billings stole the innocence of a 13-year-old girl). We know that just because someone has a badge doesn/t mean that they are morally sound. In fact, a lot of times it works the other way.
However, it does sadden us that when GPD investigates an internal crime this serious, they could allow it to slip between the cracks. And, when they do catch someone, the consequences are nil.
But whatever, the record will play on. (And instead of Mr. Kite topping the bill, the people of Gainesville will be paying it.)
