Police Tell Disney to Leave Evidence Alone

Facing criticism over his department’s slow response to the Christmas Eve accident that killed a tourist, Anaheim’s police chief told Disneyland officials Saturday to leave major injury and crime scenes undisturbed until police can investigate.

Chief Randall W. Gaston said in a statement that he and his top commanders told park officials that police must take immediate control of major incidents at the park.

The Police Department has come under widespread criticism for waiting 4 1/2 hours--including a 1 1/2-hour briefing in a park security office--before visiting the river dock where a Washington man was killed and his wife and a Disneyland employee were maimed. Park employees, meantime, cleaned up the bloody scene and removed evidence from the area.

“Any major injury, fatal accident or crime scene [should] be immediately preserved and prompt notification be made to the police department,” Gaston said. “This police department will then manage the scene through the conclusion of the investigation.”

Gaston could not be reached Saturday to elaborate on his statement, which comes several days after he strongly defended the Police Department’s handling of the accident.

In the earlier interview, Gaston said it would have been “counterproductive to rush directly to the scene.” Police have steadfastly defended their actions, noting that the Disneyland incident was an accident, not a crime.

The Saturday meeting was held at the park and included a Disneyland manager and security chief as well as Gaston and other top police officials. Det. Capt. Roger Baker, who attended the conference, said Disneyland staffers were very receptive to the department’s concerns.

After the fatal accident, Disneyland officials did a good job preserving the evidence and assisting with the police investigation, but park officials should have allowed the police to handle the matter, Baker said.

“In a perfect world, this would not have occurred,” said Baker. “We don’t think we missed anything on this one, but it does help if we’re there from the outset.”

Saturday’s announcement does not signal any change in department policy, Baker said, but constitutes an “affirmation” to businesses and institutions that police need to be notified about potentially serious situations. He said the Disneyland tragedy deviated from the policy.

“In this particular case, we were the last ones to arrive, and being the last ones to arrive, we did not get the opportunity to secure the scene ourselves,” Baker said. “There’s always concern about that.”

On Friday, the Anaheim city manager promised a full review of the police response and said a report about the deadly incident will be made to the City Council this week.

Other law enforcement agencies that police theme parks criticized the way the Anaheim police responded to the Christmas Eve accident. Police should immediately respond to an accident to secure the area, find witnesses and ensure that evidence is not disturbed, they said.

City Councilman Tom Tait on Saturday expressed confidence in Gaston and the police investigation, saying he viewed the tragedy as a freak accident and there was no indication a crime was involved.

“I don’t think they did anything wrong, but it never hurts to relook over procedures,” Tait said of the Saturday meeting.

City Councilwoman Lucille Kring on Saturday declined to comment about the incident until she is briefed about the matter by city officials.

*

A coroner’s report said the accident occurred when a dock worker tried to tether the Columbia sailing ship to the dock while it was moving too fast. A metal cleat snapped off the boat and struck the Duvall, Wash., couple in the heads. Luan Phi Dawson, 33, was killed. His wife, Lieu Thuy Vuong, 43, and ride operator Christine Carpentar, 30, were seriously injured.

The first uniformed patrolman arrived at Disneyland offices at 11:23 a.m., nearly an hour after the 10:40 a.m. accident and after a cleanup of the scene was well underway, according to police dispatch logs.

He stayed in the security office and never went to the scene.

Investigators arrived at the park about 1:30 p.m. and went to the security office for a briefing. The first investigator reached the dock at 3:05 p.m., according to the police reports.

Disneyland officials could not be reached for comment Saturday. Park officials said in the past that cleanup crews acted quickly to keep other visitors from viewing the grisly scene.

Gaston stressed in his statement that Disney’s action did not impede the police investigation.

“There has been no discovery of any intention or action to tamper with any of the items related to the incident that were collected and preserved by Disneyland personnel, nor to delay or obstruct the police investigation,” Gaston said.

He also said the accident has been “thoroughly investigated” by his department, and that police have provided all findings to the Orange County coroner’s office and the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health, which is investigating the accident because a Disneyland worker was injured.