The relationship between the Butler police union and both Chief Ron Brown and Deputy Chief David Adam has apparently bottomed out.

The Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 32, which represents rank-and-file officers in collective bargaining, announced that its membership last month passed a no-confidence vote on Brown and Adam.

The vote was unanimous, said Lt. Chad Rensel, the acting president of the city officers' union Fraternal Order of Police 32, which represents the department's 21 officers.

It is believed to be the first such vote on a chief in the department's history.

“Increasingly over the past year there has been a growing discord within the Police Department,” Rensel said in a statement Wednesday. “Ultimately, membership felt that circumstances left us with no other recourse.”

The vote was conducted June 5 and the results were presented to Mayor Ben Smith and city council at council's regular meeting later that month.

The statement listed several of the issues that prompted the action:

[naviga:ul]

[naviga:li]• Lack of leadership and poor decision making. [/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]• Lack of strategy in addressing the current criminal activity in the city. [/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]• Lack of cooperation with the media.[/naviga:li]

[/naviga:ul]

Rensel declined to comment further.

A union member who asked not to be identified said the rank-and-file's intent for the vote was “to get the attention of the mayor and council and force a new direction for the police department.”

For more on this story read Thursday's Butler Eagle.