The Kachirisky Files: Did The Santa Ana Police Union Cover Up Its Boss's Alleged Misconduct During Contract Negotiations?
During contract negotiations with the city, then-police union office manager Rosie Reed raised concerns about alleged "serious misconduct" regarding the association's president, John Kachirisky.
Publisher’s note: This report was originally published on August 19th, 2024, it has been republished and archived here.
Update May 28th, 2025: The full Kachirisky Files can be viewed, downloaded and shared from here. Since May 7th, the city of Santa Ana has refused to give an update on the complaint submitted regarding Kachirisky’s alleged misconduct.
Update May 31st, 2025: City spokesperson Paul Eakins said that the city has nothing to share about the anonymous complaint submitted. Eakins only replied after another request for comment was sent to him and had CC’d the city manager, deputy city manager and three council members .
To avoid jeopardizing then-ongoing contract negotiations with the city of Santa Ana, the Santa Ana Police Officers Association (SAPOA) appears to have suppressed incidents of “serious misconduct” allegedly committed by SAPOA President John Kachirisky, according to leaked emails between then-SAPOA office manager Rosie Reed and then-SAPOA attorney Charles Goldwasser.
Reed emailed Goldwasser on June 10th and stated that she received no follow up after voicing concerns about the alleged behavior from Kachirisky. Kachirisky and the rest of the SAPOA executive board were copied on that email.
Goldwasser replied on June 12th telling Reed that he could not do anything about the issues as it could “result in chaos and upend the Association at a critical point in our contract negotiations with the City.”
Goldwasser’s reply did not mention an investigation into the allegations Reed brought forward, nor any plans to start an investigation. His reply stated “I was at a loss as to what I should do, if anything, with the information you provided. I did not believe that I could investigate the issues by speaking with any members of the Association…”
On June 18th, just over a week after Reed sent the initial email, the Santa Ana city council approved SAPOA’s $27m contract.
The SAPOA executive board responded to Inadvertent’s requests for comment: “We are aware of the email dated June 10th. The allegations contained within the email were fully investigated when it was received, and not one of the allegations were substantiated in any way.”
There was no proof of an investigation attached to their response.
Reed’s email and an anonymous complaint were printed and sent about 4 weeks ago1 to several Santa Ana city council members, including the mayor, as well as the police chief. The complaint requested an “investigation be conducted into the egregious and unethical behavior of John Kachirisky.”
Councilwoman Jessie Lopez, who received the complaint, said, “I take these allegations very seriously and fully support a thorough investigation into this concerning behavior. I am committed to ensuring a safe and respectful workplace for everyone, and any form of sexual harassment or intimidation will not be tolerated by my office.”
Kachirisky is also a corporal at the Santa Ana Police Department.
Reed’s email stated, “I am requesting that this letter be read at the Board of Director’s meeting on Thursday - June 13, 2024. This is a grave issue, and the [Board of Directors] needs to be aware of the potential liability.”
Reed’s email states that she met with the SAPOA’s attorneys, David and Charles Goldwasser, on May 9th to “disclose several issues concerning President John Kachirisky’s pattern of behavior.”
According to Reed, Kachirisky had a “creepy interaction” with a former SAPOA employee’s daughter in 2019, he would also insist to “take [Reed] home” in 2021 and had a recent interaction with a SAPOA employee in April 2024. In her email, Reed told Goldwasser, “My intent was for you to advise President Kachirisky of the potential ‘liability issue’ presented to SAPOA relating to [the SAPOA employee]...”
In a phone conversation, that SAPOA employee denied that anything “wrong or inappropriate” happened between them. The employee stated “If you want to talk about how great the POA is, I could talk to you about that, how great of a leader he is, I could talk to you about that.”
The former SAPOA employee, whose daughter allegedly had a “creepy interaction” with Kachirisky, declined to comment.
At the May 9th meeting, Reed also informed the SAPOA’s attorneys about Kachirisky’s “credit card spending, consumption of alcohol/drunkenness, his unpresidential behavior at [an April 2024 meeting]...”
Her email stated “I am not to be harassed or be forced into a hostile work environment, or I will immediately contact the City of Santa Ana Attorney’s Office, Sonia R. Carvalho and Human Resources Department and file a formal complaint against Santa Ana Employee John Kachirisky and/or Executive Board.”
Reed retired last Tuesday, ending almost 33 years of managing the SAPOA’s office. She worked for six different SAPOA presidents throughout those decades. In her retirement announcement sent to the SAPOA membership, she called her retirement an “abrupt departure”. It goes on to state that the decision to retire “...is based purely on personal and family reasons, and in no way indicative of my discontentment with the Office Manager position within the Association.”
The retirement announcement from Reed and a letter of recommendation provided for her by Kachirisky were both sent out to the SAPOA membership on August 12th. In the letter, Kachirisky stated, “I am proud to recommend her for any future employment opportunities and wish her the very best in her future endeavors.”
The “abrupt” retirement and letter of recommendation come just over two months after Reed sent the email to SAPOA’s attorney and executive board. It is the latest in Kachirisky’s “rebrand” of the SAPOA.
Kachirisky and Goldwasser did not respond to repeated requests for comment.
Reed declined to comment, citing a non-disclosure agreement with the SAPOA.
July ‘24.