He wishes he would have trusted his gut. Hamilton County Corrections Officer Douglas Allen tells investigators that he suspected that something was not right as he searched the parking lots at Seven Hills School for Kyle Plush. He was directing traffic at the school the day that Plush was trapped in his van in the parking lot and volunteered to help Cincinnati Police with their search.
The Hamilton County Sheriffs Office has completed an internal review of his actions and has closed the case saying "that he acted within the guidelines of the Hamilton County Sheriffs Office policy and procedures".
C.O. Allen says he called the phone of Kyle Plush several times as he conducted his search of the school grounds and let Seven Hills Operation Director Robert Horn listen to one of the calls which went to voicemail and they both heard Kyle's greeting. Horn told Allen that they had no reports of any missing kids. Still bothered by the mystery when he got home Allen says he told his wife that he was afraid a kid could have been abducted.
Allen says it was that evening that he learned of the death of Kyle Plush when he received a call from the Seven Hills Operations Director to tell him the boy had been found deceased in his van. Allen says he immediately responded to the scene and spoke with the Cincinnati Police detectives who were investigating the case.
READ THE INVESTIGATION SUMMARY BELOW:
Memorandum From the desk of:Lieutenant Steve Minnich Chief Investigator Internal Affairs Section
On April 12, 2018, Chief Deputy Mark Schoonover requested that the Internal Affairs Section investigate the actions of C.0. Douglas Allen in reference to the death of Kyle Plush. C.O. Allen works off duty employment for the Seven Hills School, which consists of directing traffic and after hour's security of the property. Kyle Plush was a student at the Seven Hills School, 5400 Red Bank Rd. Cincinnati Ohio 45227, and he had called "911" for assistance. Kyle had called for assistance because he was trapped in his vehicle. Cincinnati Police Officers responded to the area in an attempt to locate him. It is to be noted that at the time of the dispatch the identity of the caller was not known. While Cincinnati Police Officers were looking for Kyle, C.O. Allen was directing traffic. It was later learned that C.O. Allen was unaware of the Cincinnati Police Officers being dispatched to the area until after he had completed the duties of directing traffic.The Seven Hills School is located in the City of Cincinnati and falls under the jurisdiction of the Cincinnati Police Department. When Kyle called "911" for assistance the communications center that received the call was the Cincinnati Communications Center. C.0. Allen was logged into the Hamilton County Communications Center and did not hear the Cincinnati Police Officers being dispatched to the area. Kyle was later found deceased in his van which was parked on the lot of the Seven Hills School.On April 12, 2018 C.0. Douglas Allen responded to the Internal Affairs Section and was interviewed by myself and Sergeant Joseph Lee. The interview was recorded and a copy of the recording is contained in the case file. C.0. Allen said that he has been working for the Seven Hills School for approximately 14 years, performing duties such as directing traffic in the afternoon and providing security during the evening. He said he walks the 54 acre campus checking for suspicious activity while making sure the buildings are secure. C.O. Allen said that when he directs traffic he wears his class "A" uniform with a traffic vest and in the evening he wears plain clothes to walk the campus. He explained that while he performs his nightly duties he also carries his service weapon. C.O. Allen was asked if he has followed the proper policy in reference to submitting the proper paperwork in order to work off duty employment for the Seven Hills School and he stated "yes." It is to be noted that I contacted the off duty detail coordinator, Sergeant Burton and he confirmed that C.O. Allen has been approved to work off duty employment for the Seven Hills School. Sergeant Burton forwarded a copy of the monthly 21-C and the 21-B renewal forms, which confirm that C.O. Allen has followed the proper policy in regards to this off duty employment. Copies of the 21-C and 21-B are contained in the case file. I asked C.O. Allen ifhe was wearing a communication's police radio while he was directing traffic and he stated "yes." I asked him if he had called in the traffic detail which If a reply is necessary it may be made directly on this form. Memorandum From the desk of:Lieutenant Steve Minnich Chief Investigator Internal Affairs Section included him logging his radio on through the Hamilton County Communications Center and he acknowledged that he had followed proper procedure. I contacted the Hamilton County Communications Center and the supervisor confirmed that C.O. Allen followed the proper procedure. The recording of C.O. Allen contacting the Hamilton County Dispatcher is contained in the case file. C.O. Allen said that he had accidently hit his emergency button on the day of this incident and he had to call the Hamilton County Communications Center to advise them thatit was an accident. He also stated that he called the communications center again because his radio indicated that his emergency button had been activated a second time. The recording oft hese two phone calls to the Hamilton County Communications Center are contained in the casefile. C.O. Allen said that he was finishing the traffic detail at the school and was moving traffic cones when he noticed a Cincinnati Police car sitting on the lot of the school. C.O Allen said he walked up to the cruiser and asked the officers if he should "keep an eye out" for anything. One of the officers said "yes", at which time the officer showed him the computer screen that contained the dispatch information. C.O. Allen said the screen indicated that there was a woman trapped in her van and "Phase 2." C.0. Allen asked the officers what "Phase 2," meant and the officers did not know. C.O. Allen called Robert Hom, Operations Director for the Seven Hills School and asked him if there were any missing students at which time Mr. Horn said there were no reports of a missing student. C.O. Allen said that as soon as he had finished with his traffic detail he started looking in vehicles while on foot and then he drove around. C.O. Allen said he went in a different direction from where the Cincinnati Officers were coming from because he had been told that they had driven through the lots. The dispatch information that he had seen on the officer's computer only stated that a female caller was trapped in a van but there was no description of the van. C.O. Allen then called the Cincinnati Communications Center in order to obtain more information. He said he talked to the dispatcher that had received the call from the victim. The dispatcher told him that the "911" caller, now confirmed as Kyle Plush, spoke with a faint voice. C.O. Allen told the dispatcher that while he was directing traffic he had a problem with a woman that tried to direct kids across the street. C.O. Allen told her that he was in charge and she does not direct the traffic. The unknown woman then turned left into the lot and stopped her car on the sidewalk, he then yelled to her "ma'am you will have to move your car." She yelled something at him and then he told her "move the car!" C.O. Allen said maybe she was pranking due to her being upset, and then the dispatcher told him that a pounding was heard over the phone while speaking with the victim. C.O. Allen then asked the dispatcher for the phone number that the victim called from. C.0. Allen said he called the number and it went to voicemail and he heard a very young man's voice. C.O. Allen said that he thought the Cincinnati dispatcher would have had "GPS" on the phone. He then called the Hamilton County Communications Center and asked if they could run the number through a GPS or a crisscross at which time she checked the number through the crisscross with negative results. The dispatcher then told him that a GPS check would have to be performed by a supervisor. C.O. Allen ended the call and then met with Operations Director Horn at which time he called Kyle's phone and they listen to the voice mail, Mr. Horn told him again that there were no reported missing students. C.O. Allen then drove around because he felt that something was not right. He called Kyle's phone again and left a message for him to call him back. C.O. Allen remembers leaving a message to call him back and that he was not going to be in trouble. C.O. Allen said he just wanted to make sure that Kyle was okay. He then drove home and talked to his wife about the incident. He told her that he was worried that a kid could have been abducted because the way the call ended. C.O. Allen said he should have not ignored his gut feeling. He said he had received a call around 2130 hours on that evening from Operations Director Horn and was informed that Kyle was located deceased in his car. He said he immediately responded the area and spoke with Cincinnati Police detectives at which time he gave a statement. Lt. Dave Downing, Hamilton County Sheriffs Office Enforcement Division, responded to the scene to check on C.O. Allen and to render any assistance that was needed. It is to be noted that C.0.Allen was able to provide the times from his call log on his cellphone, that he called the Cincinnati Communication's Center as well as the Hamilton County Communications Center.Contained in the case file is the recording from the Hamilton County Communications Center in reference to the calls made by C.O. Allen.Sergeant Joseph Lee interviewed Lt. Downing, Enforcement Division. Lt. Downing said that when he was made aware that C.0. Allen was being questioned about his actions in reference to this incident he responded to the scene. Lt. Downing stated upon his arrival to the scene the area was already blocked off. He didn't want to interfere with the "City's" investigation so he didn't enter the area. Lt. Downing said that he had sent a request to see if C.0. Allen was okay and if he needed anything. Lt. Downing said he waited until C.O. Allen was finished speaking to the Cincinnati Police investigators and then he spoke to him briefly. He said that since it was Cincinnati's investigation and C.O. Allen was okay he left and returned to his normal duties. E.O. Nick Rauen #1550, Hamilton County Sheriffs Office, was working beat 9N33, and was dispatched in reference to Kyle Plush being reported as a missing, report #1281445. Upon arrival he was met by Jill Plush, victim's mother, she explained that Kyle had not come home from his tennis match. Mrs. Plush stated that she had called Kyle's tennis coach,and the coach informed her that the he did not show up to the tennis match. Mrs. Plush stated that Kyle's phone was still showing that it was in the parking lot of the Seven Hills School,according to the family locator application on her phone. It is to be noted that Kyle was located a short time later in his vehicle, deceased. Contained in the case file is a copy of the missing report.Sergeant Joseph Lee, Hamilton County Sheriffs Office Internal Affairs Section, spoke to Lt.Doug Snider, Internal Affairs, Cincinnati Police Department, and was informed that they are completing an investigation into this incident which consist of the dispatch, the Cincinnati Police Officers' actions, and the Criminal Investigation Section is investigating the incident as well. Lt.Snider confirmed that C.0. Allen called the Cincinnati Communication Center in an attempt to gather more information about Kyle's call for help. He was also able to provide the time that he had called Kyle's cellphone.After investigating the actions of C.O. Douglas Allen, the Internal Affairs Section determined that he acted within the guidelines of the Hamilton County Sheriffs Office policy and procedures. E.O. Nick Rauen performed his duty of completing a missing report that was filed by Jill Plush. He also acted within the guidelines of the Hamilton County Sheriffs Office policy and procedure. I request that this case be closed because both deputies acted within the guidelines of the Hamilton County Sheriffs Department policies and procedures.
Respectfully submitted,Lt. Steve Minnich