Burmeister blamed alcohol for his composing and sending the text to former Deputy Jodie Van Fossen. She was the undercover drug agent who the sheriff fired and she later accused Kimpel of raping her.
According to a two-page memorandum titled "Disciplinary Hearing Decision," the text message sent to Van Fossen read, "sounds like Dean knows he's ****** hard. I love it. Guess I don't have to kill him now. Had a plan to do it too."
The memo continued, "During the department's March 15 interview of you (Burmeister) about this, you said that you were drunk. This was the only excuse you offered," stated Sidney City Manager Steve Stilwell.
Police Chief Gessler recommended to the City Manager that Burmeister be terminated from employment. The only other disciplinary action in Burmeister's personnel file is a letter of reprimand by the Police Chief dated December 20, 2010, accusing him of using the Ohio Law Enforcement gateway to check on an individual for no official purpose.
The actual investigation of the threat against Kimpel is being investigated by the Shelby County Sheriff's Department. To date, no criminal charges have been filed against Burmeister.
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