Robert Wadman

Controversies

Franklin scandal

Main article: Franklin child sex ring

External links

• Excerpt of Alex Constantine's book chapter on Wadman

Gary Gilmore case

• From p.??? of The Franklin Scandal by Nick Bryant: "As Orem’s police chief, Wadman received national press because his department played an instrumental role in apprehending killer Gary Gilmore—Wadman even made it into Norman Mailer’s bestselling book, The Executioner’s Song, about the Gilmore murder spree."
• Suspicious aspects of the Gilmore case
  • From p.193 of Programmed to Kill by Dave McGowan: "Also in October, Utah’s notorious Gary Gilmore, immortalized in a disinformational Norman Mailer book and a made-for-TV movie, was convicted and sentenced to death. Gilmore immediately and improbably began campaigning to become the first man executed in the United States since 1962. He succeeded, earning himself an appearance before a Utah firing squad on January 19, 1977, and opening the doors to the resumption of state executions.27 Just over a week later, Bundy was taken to Aspen to stand before Judge George Lohr and answer to the charges filed against him in the Campbell case. It would not be the last time that a high-profile execution immediately preceded an important court appearance by Ted Bundy."
  • From p.198 of Programmed to Kill by Dave McGowan: "To insure that Bundy stuck to the script and entered the guilty pleas, the state of Florida executed John Spenkelink just six days before Ted’s scheduled court appearance. The message sent to Bundy could not have been any clearer: take the deal or you too will have an appointment with Florida’s “Old Sparky.” To further drive that point home, Ted was brought to appear in the very same courtroom where Spenkelink had been condemned to die, with many of the same actors in attendance. For a time, Bundy was even represented by Spenkelink’s attorney, Brian Hayes. Spenkelink was, curiously enough, only the second man executed in this country since 1962, the first being, of course, the aforementioned Gary Gilmore. Before his electrocution, Spenkelink was asked if he had any final statement, to which he replied: “I can’t talk. The [chin] strap is too tight.” That was the only statement he was allowed to make."
  • Gilmore's brother was Mikal Gilmore, a Rolling Stone contributing editor (Rolling Stone, "Exclusive: Bob Dylan on His Mystical Rebirth", 2012/09/18)
  • UPI, "Promoter Lawrence Shiller testified today an uncle of Gary...", 1983/09/28
  • New York Times, "The Birth of ‘Just Do It’ and Other Magic Words", 2009/08/19: "TO the list of great copy writers in advertising, add an unlikely name: Gary Gilmore. Mr. Gilmore, the notorious spree-killer, uttered the words “Let’s do it” just before a firing squad executed him in Utah in 1977. Years later, the phrase became the inspiration for Nike’s “Just Do It” campaign."

John Singer murder

• Case 4 (begins on p.107) of Police State: How America's Cops Get Away with Murder by Gerry Spence (2015)
• Court documents from Singer v. Wadman
  • United States District Court for the District of Utah, nos. C-80-0212, C-82-0037W: Singer v. Wadman, "595 F. Supp. 188", 1982/09/03
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, Vickie Singer, et Al, Plaintiffs-appellants, v. Robert Wadman, et Al, Defendants-appellees, "745 F.2d 606", 1984/09/27

Omaha career

• Mike Boyle controversy
  • From p.315 of The Gate City: A History of Omaha by Lawrence Harold Larsen: "In 1981, Veys, seeking reelection, lost to Michael Boyle, a lawyer and former Douglas County Election Commissioner."
  • Wadman v. City of Omaha ruling on 1989/04/21 by the Supreme Court of Nebraska - affirms his 1986 firing for insubordination was lawful
• New York Times, "Armed, Sophisticated and Violent, Two Drug Gangs Blanket Nation", 1988/11/25 - mentions the Bloods and Crips from Los Angeles spreading to Omaha; quotes Wadman as saying that the gang presence in Omaha is "relatively small" compared to in other cities

Wilmington career

• Chicago Tribune, "N. Carolina Town Eyes Top Aurora Cop", 1991/08/02
• Brandon Lee shooting death
  • Rigorous Intuition post claiming that Wadman had a suspicious role in the investigation of Lee's death: "Did you guys know that from Omaha, Robert Wadman went to North Carolina and was Police Chief in Wilmington? A lot of movies are filmed in Wilmington, NC and they filmed "The Crow" there. Wadman closed (inotherwords it was all kept secret) the investigation into the death of Jason Lee who was shot during the filming. It was ruled n accident but some thought there was something weird about it."
  • Los Angeles Times, "Brandon Lee Apparently Killed by .44 Bullet", 1993/04/02
  • Washington Post, "POLICE CALL ACTOR'S DEATH 'SUSPICIOUS'", 1993/04/03
• Sgt. Robert Clatty - in his book, John DeCamp claims that Clatty was a ritual abuse expert whom Wadman fought
  • Virginian Pilot, "SHOOTING VICTIM", 1996/08/06: "North Carolina authorities are conducting autopsies on the bodies of two men, one from Norfolk, found shot to death in a mall parking lot. Tyrone Demetrious Sneed, 23, of Wilmington, and Ronald Gardner, 22, of Norfolk were found in a Chevrolet Cavalier at Independence Mall in Wilmington, N.C., about 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Wilmington police Sgt. Robert Clatty said. The men were shot in the head, Clatty said. ``I think we're pretty well convinced that this was a homicide, a double homicide,'' he said."
• People search information on Ron Lee Silver, who Alex Constantine says challenged Wadman on his past after arriving in Wilmington
• Wilmington Star-News, "NO REASON GIVEN; WADMAN RESIGNS AS CHIEF OF POLICE; WILL RECEIVE $26,000 FOR CONSULTING DEAL", 1994/07/12
• <publisher unknown>, "Wadman Gets Farewell Party"
• Wilmington Star-News, "A history of Chief Robert Wadman's troubled tenure with the Wilmington Police Department", 1994
• Wilmington Star-News, "Chief wants police to take over narcotics unit", 2002/10/18: "In the spring of 1997, the city and county joined forces again to battle drugs and related crime after working separately for five years. In May 1992, then-Police Chief Robert Wadman pulled his detectives out of the old city-county squad."
• Wilmington Star-News, "Ex-councilwoman’s book claims to reveal shocking secrets behind official Wilmington", 2006/09/13: "Moore also takes aim at former Wilmington police Chief Robert Wadman, who she wrote “reigned supreme in the department for five years amid rumors of threats, intimidation and sexual exploitation … .” Wadman, who was chief in the 1990s and is now a criminal justice professor at Weber State University in Utah, did not return a message left Tuesday on his work telephone."
• Katherine Bell Moore, "Police, Pedophiles, And Politicians", 2006/07/07: "Bob Wadman was selected as the chief of police in Wilmington ,NC following a national search that cost over $100,000. Mayor Betz and Councilman Snyder were relentless in their pursuit of his selection and presented him as an author, a scholar, and a gentleman. Unwittingly, the Council voted unanimously to appoint Robert Wadman as our chief. Chaos reigned supreme in the department for five years amidst rumors of threats, intimidation, and sexual exploitation sparking the birth of a very perverted police underground newspaper. A retired WPD sergeant shared with me his concern about the police department's ‘ Explorer program after young men who were escorted home by the chief suddenly withdrew from the program."

2008 libel lawsuits

• Alex Constantine, "Robert Wadman's Perjury Party", 2008/09/24

Post-law enforcement

• Weber State University, "Professor Helps Former Soviet Block Nation Develop Police Regulations", 2005/08/30
• Robert Wadman, "Utah on the wrong side of history", 2013/04/09
• Robert Wadman, "Commentary: I’ve supported the Second Amendment. Now I’m exposing the NRA’s power and myths", 2018/02/26 - says that he "carried a firearm as a law enforcement officer for over 35 years", contradicting his false assertion at Alisha Owen's trial that he didn't carry a gun since his days as a federal agent in the 1970s