A Savannah-Chatham police officer fired in December following allegations he solicited sex through a popular website while on duty has expressed regret for his actions.
“I am deeply sorry and remorseful for my violation of city policy,” Harold Moore said Thursday in an emailed statement to the Savannah Morning News. “It has cost me my career, a relationship and the respect and admiration of my children.”
Documents obtained through an open records request indicate Moore was notified Dec. 19 that he would be terminated after a two-day paid suspension following an internal affairs investigation that determined he had sent two emails while on duty Nov. 30 responding to personal ads of a sexual nature that had been posted on Craigslist.
Additionally, the investigation concluded Moore had used a department computer — the mobile computer in his police vehicle — for various personal matters, including searching Craigslist and other websites for similar ads.
Both emails Moore sent on Nov. 30 indicated he was a police officer seeking a sexual encounter, internal affairs investigator Sgt. Tim Thompson alleges in a report dated Dec. 17. Moore described himself as “an on duty cop” in the second email he sent.
While the emails were sent from a personal account, Thompson’s report stated, the account name identified him as a Savannah-Chatham police officer.
Ultimately, Moore was fired for three violations of city and department policy, according to the notice of suspension prior to dismissal issued to him Dec. 19. It stated he had violated his oath of office, ethics and conduct by using “on duty time” for “activity other than that which relates to police work,” he had violated the department’s computer use policy by using the Internet in an “unprofessional” and “unauthorized” matter, and he had violated metro’s social media policy by using such websites for “personal or otherwise unauthorized purposes” while on duty.
An examination of the hard drive from Moore’s police-issued computer, conducted as part of the investigation, determined the former officer had used the equipment for personal matters — visiting websites for Georgia Power, fantasy football and Netflix, as well as additional searches for personal ads that were sexual in nature — dating back at least to the middle of October.
Moore appealed his termination to Acting City Manager Stephanie Cutter, but city spokesman Bret Bell said Cutter upheld Savannah-Chatham Police Chief Willie Lovett’s decision.
Moore, who was an advanced police officer, was hired by the Savannah Police Department in October 2003. He spent nearly his entire decade with the department as a patrol officer and had been assigned to the Islands and Central precincts.
The most recent performance review in Moore’s personnel file, dated Feb. 10, 2010, indicated he met or exceeded requirements. An unnamed supervisor stated in the report that Moore “responds positively when given direction” and was “a hard worker.”
Records indicate Moore had faced disciplinary action five times, mostly for vehicle-related infractions. In November 2007, he was suspended 15 days for violating department standards after he fired his gun while pursuing a reportedly stolen vehicle, left the scene of the shooting and eventually caused a wreck while in pursuit.