Bellevue Police Officer Arrested for 3rd Time Related to Domestic Violence Case

John Kivlin, a Bellevue police officer was arrested for the third time Tuesday in connection to a domestic violence case involving his ex-girlfriend. The King County prosecutor said John Kivlin is accused of violating a no-contact order for a second time, after trying to contact the victim multiple times over the weekend. Kivlin was charged Thursday with additional counts of violating the no-contact order and witness tampering.

It marks the third time Kivlin has been arrested since April.

He was initially arrested on April 28, one day after his then-girlfriend ended their relationship. She went to Bellevue police to report him for checking the records connected to her license plate and to disclose photos of injuries he allegedly inflicted on her weeks earlier.

The woman told Bellevue police April 27 that her now-ex had run her plates several times while they were together and told her that if she were to report him, it "would be difficult for her to drive in Bellevue" and "he would try to make it a living hell to drive in Bellevue by calling in favors to his friend to stop her," according to the King County Sheriff's Office, which investigated the case.

In July Kivlin was also charged with witness tampering, violating a domestic violence protection order and 4th degree assault for the case involving his ex-girlfriend.

Kivlin resigned from the Bellevue Police Department on August 2, 2018 after 16 years on the force.
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Domestic violence is a serious problem, and I don't wish to minimize the effects on the physical injuries to victim in anyway. "During the three-month investigation into Kivlin, detectives discovered text messages between the two suggesting the woman had been sexually assaulted by other members of the Bellevue Police Department who she also met online. One of them is a detective who is now on leave, who said their sexual contact was consensual. She claimed the other was Chief Steve Mylett, who was placed on leave two weeks ago."
When we look at data privacy and personal security in this case there is a serious concern that Officer Kivlin was able to run the vehicle plates of the victim several times, and that he believed that he could "make it a living hell to drive in Bellevue by calling in favors to his friend to stop her". Attacks can be mental - involving harassment, isolation, and retaliation - as well as physical.

Misuse of law enforcement databases in not new. In February 2018, we discussed the report that "police officers across the country abuse confidential law enforcement databases to get information on romantic partners, business associates, neighbors, journalists and others for reasons totally unrelated to police work. In the worst cases, officers have stalked, harassed and tampered with criminal cases using details obtained through criminal history and motor vehicle databases."

The problem we face from a data privacy viewpoint is that police departments (and other government agencies) have access to vast amounts of personal data - and may need that data to do their jobs - but there is not strict accountability on how the data is accessed and used.

So, if you found that some government employee was keeping secret, hidden files about you on a government computer network; would this concern you? How much more would it concern you if you reported it and the police department did nothing about it? What if the department retaliated against you, making your life a "living hell"?