Cleveland police recently disciplined an officer for the use of excessive force against a man incorrectly identified as a suspect in the 2020 murder of fellow officer James Skernivitz.
It took nearly four years and three investigations to suspend Lt. Edward Lentz for his role in the arrest of Nathaniel Gilliam, who was left with a broken eye socket, records reviewed by Signal Cleveland show.
Skernivitz was working undercover in a parked car with an informant when they were ambushed and shot in an attempted robbery. The day after, the police received incorrect information that Gilliam was a potential suspect. At the time, Lentz asked to join the team of officers that would arrest him, according to the investigative reports. But Lentz did not disclose that he and Skernivitz once worked as partners and were friends, according to the suspension letter issued on March 18.
Department policy requires officers disclose such connections to ensure investigations are free of potential conflicts. The failure to disclose this – and the claim that Lentz kicked Gilliam in the head – triggered multiple inquiries: a criminal investigation by the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s office, an internal affairs probe within the department and an investigation into a civilian complaint filed by one of Gilliam’s relatives.
Lentz said he punched suspect in shoulder but did not kick him
Lentz denied kicking Gilliam in the face but said he punched him three times in the shoulder while other officers held him down, according to Lentz’s interview with Internal Affairs. Other officers said they saw Gilliam resist arrest.
The Civilian Police Review Board heard the details of the case for the first time in December of 2023. The Civilian Police Review Board is made up of nine Cleveland residents and decides police misconduct cases that stem from resident complaints.
The only undisputed fact is that Gilliam sustained a fractured orbital bone during his arrest, the investigator from the Office of Professional Standards told the review board in December. (The office investigates resident complaints against Cleveland police and is made up of civilian investigators, not police.)
A couple of the review board members asked if they could add retaliation to the list of charges
“I kind of feel like that’s too many coincidences, right?” asked Chenoa Miller, one of the youngest members on the review board. She added that the story felt like one of vengeance.
Ultimately, the review board waffled on adding an additional charge, and opted to focus on excessive force and “impropriety” – or dishonesty – for failing to disclose his previous connection to Skernivitz.
On March 18, Interim Safety Director Wayne Drummond upheld the Civilian Police Review Board’s discipline recommendation that Lentz get a 13-day suspension without pay. Lentz was not disciplined for failing to disclose his friendship with Skernivitz but was told to reread related police orders.
President of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 8 James O’Malley confirmed that Lentz will be challenging the suspension.
“We believe in him and we look forward to all the facts being reviewed through the grievance process,” O’Malley wrote in an email.
