Man who fatally shot fellow Norfolk officer resigns with $57,500 from city

Kenneth, I was there that nite.I want to apologize to you for the bad info you are getting; you should reconsider your source.You are a victim of grandeur.Whoever is feeding you this mess was 1) not there that night, or 2) didnt know Seneca or Gordon as well as they are leading you to believe.They were NEVER partners.Not ONCE did they ride together in the same police car.Gordon didnt have any indifference with Seneca at all.I know this for a FACT. I assure you I knew Seneca and I know Gordon very well.Gordon has a great deal of experience and training.He has always held himself to the highest standards, even right up to when he resigned!I cant say that about a lot of other officers.He did what any well trained officer should have done.

It is obvious you have never been a Police Officer because when another Officer calls for backup in a violent situation there is no such thing as an assigned post. Take note that when you are in desperate need one day I hope an Officer who is assigned a post that may be closer to you or needed for backup will hold to a higher calling than your ignorant philosophy and leave his assigned post to save you and/or your family's life. May God Bless you in your 9 to 5 job and may He protect us in ours.

the bashers of Ofc. Barry play the race card when someone disagrees with them...typical

....if he had been at his assigned post that evening he would still be alive today. It doesn't get any clearer than that.

Fourth, an Officer is trained to keep his eyes and weapon on the threat, if another Officer arrives on scene and yells "put the gun down" obviously Darden would have assumed those commands were meant for the suspect and not him. I do not believe this was a deliberate act like rumors have suggested, however I do believe that Barry made a hasty decision especially when the other Officers on scene FIRST did not see Darden as a threat. As for the inference of meeting a woman at the scene, that is incorrect. Darden and his partner were eating dinner (which is allowed) at a fast food place were lots of Officers go, a short way between his assigned area and the scene. Who cares if there may have been a friend of theirs eating too, it is sad that people try to redirect the issue by focusing on irrelevant points regarding that night.

I really appreciate you contributing your points and would like to hear the rest! At least you one who was actually THERE and give credibility to this story, whereas, most of the people up here have bought into the media's and Barry's accounts of what happened that night. I have never denied Seneca wrongdoings that night, however, he was also instrumental in calming down the crowd which was mased for by two inexperienced officers. Jayach, please tell us if you thought that Seneca displayed any "gangster-style" tendencies which officer Barry described. The problem I see is, race was very prominent in this case although it should not have been. I read an interesting article recently, here are some mind-blowing stats for you. There have been 80 plus reported cases of black officers being shot by white officers; however, there has not been a single case of a black officer shooting a white cop! What is wrong with this picture? Considering the ratio of black to white cops in this country, something is clearly wrong here. You can not overlook the issue of race when this keeps happening regardless the circumstances.

Jay I would like to hear the other point. I mean if this comment ever makes it out in time for you to read it. I may have somehow slipped back into "untrusted" category. I am serving time in "Comment Siberia"..or maybe more accurately 'Comment Limbo"..since none of my comments are being removed. I have reviewed the last several posts prior to the "Banishment" & can find no violations of guidelines, or anything even remotely close to an infraction. Unless someone just doesn't agree with my opinions..which is really not that unusual. lol

I admire your determination to get at the truth, but I don't understand why you spend any time here. These boards attract some of the community's meanest elements and this story, every time it resurfaces, becomes a KKK meeting for closet racists.

You won't find any justice here.

....but the reason Darden was there was not because he responded to the call for service. He was already in the area visiting a "lady friend" instead of being at his designated assignment. Again I say that if he had remained on his assignment this tragedy would not have occurred and he would be alive today. I'm done with this topic because it obviously will never be resolved until someone finds Barry Gordon at fault for something. Kinda hard to do since he's been cleared criminally and administratively and the Darden has been paid off by the city. Can we just let it go now?

Unfortunately as someone there I could not sit idly by while reading the misinformation being strewn about. First, Darden and Barry were in the same sector for a short period of time and did in fact ride together on a few occasions. Second, several if not most officers on scene knew Darden was there in plainclothes, including the two standing directly next to him at the time of the shooting. Third, Darden had been previously told to stay in his concentrated area that night; however any officer who cared would have responded to that location after hearing the chaotic radio traffic. In fact there were officers from other sectors there. If someone would like to respond I still have one more point to be made.

you obviously have a biased opinion. Anyone who thinks an officer would publicly execute another officer because they didnt get along is having trouble with reality. Trust me if an officer wanted to off another cop there are hundreds of better ways to do so and it only takes about 6 months on the street to figure them out. The tragedy here is not only the loss of an officer but the railroading of another. If the races were reversed this case probably wouldnt be in news and I can assure you there wouldnt be any threats of riots etc. Some people just dont know how to act.

You have an officer who could not even express remorse to the family of an officer that he shot 6 times in the back! His description of events using the terms thug and gangster to protray Seneca is very revealing!
Officer Barry had better overcome his stereotypical mindset otherwise he may end up either a victim or the culprit of yet another shooting!
I certainly hope that his new department provides him the opportunity to prove me wrong; however, something tells me that his hire was nothing more than another example of good ole boy justice! If this is the case, then I truly feel sorry for him and the department that hired him because nothing will change.

The city obviously discriminated against an officer who was totally cleared of any wrongdoing and put him in a job designed to force him to resign. He was systematically denied the opportunity to work any type of overtime or off-duty detail that allows every officer the chance to earn a living wage--no officer can live on the base pay for at least the first three years on the job without working a minimum of 15 extra hours a week of overtime or security details. A white officer and a black city manager and chief of police conspiring to force him to resign and receive a "neutral" job reference. Of course the city leaps to pay off more money since the taxpayers are viewed as an unending source of revenue--a typical response from them. This officer should have been returned to duty as soon as he was cleared by the review board and is yet another instance of being the wrong color to work for the city of Norfolk.

Guess Fred is telling us nicely not to write it here..glad that my comment was in between. Looks like you were wise to wait. Thanks though...I did glean some new info & if a book comes out on this issue I will read it, & evaluate it accordingly with an open mind.

We do not allow multiple, consecutive posts. This morning, for example, one user attempted to post five consecutive 750-comments. Only the first post was approved.

Please don't try to circumvent the 750-word limit by posting part 1, part 2, part 3, etc.

It's not fair to others who wish to post their opinions, especially on a story driving as much interest as this one.

This does not prohibit more than one post to a story, but you must allow others ro participate before posting again.

If you see a violation of this rule that we miss, please flag the post.

Contractorva, being a relative of Seneca and knowing him personally and having close ties to those within the police department prevents me from saying what I really want to say! Having said that, I plan on writing a book in the near future to address some of the concerns that Seneca had within the police department as well as the breakdown in leadership and race relations from within! Trust me, all is not well with the NPD.
It is a shame that this has become so racially divisive especially since Seneca had friends of all races! It is not uncommon at all for an officer to be found not at fault in a high profile case, nonetheless, there are other issues involved which can not be revealed to the public which has the potential to become explosive if the media became involved!
Let's just say that Seneca revealed some interesting things to us just prior to his death and there were those which sought to shut him up! Officer Canfield's private thoughts would be of interest for those of you who want to make this about race! BTW, I wonder if now officer Barry will his express remorse for shooting Seneca! We are still waiting to hear from him.

There have been a few outlandish things said about this incident. Gordon Barry and I were hired at the same time and went through the same academy. I consider him a good friend to this day. He and Darden were never partners that I can remember as Barry was K-9 for a while before the incident and Darden was relitively new. Even so, in the heat of the moment identifications are difficult at best. No one should even attempt to second guess that night except for those who were there. Gordon Barry is an outstanding officer and I would be proud to have him as a partner today. Whatever Barry did while in Norfolk, he always had the best intentions of the public and fellow officers in mind. The sad part is that Norfolk could be a great city to be a police officer but a lack of concern about the city by many of its own residents and a total lack of leadership in higher levels of management make Norfolk a horrible city to work for. After 8 years of service to the city I resigned to go to a different agency (one that started me at a higher salary then if I retired in Norfolk). However that wasnt the main reason for me to leave, no one is in this job to get rich. It was the way we we

Please finish your last post & add anything else you know about it. I found all the comments very interesting. Even if you only get 750 characters, I for one would like to read the rest. Please continue. You can post again with the rest. The part that has always bugged me is the identification issue, & the fact they were previously partners. I would like to hear the rest about the dog as well. Was the person the dog attacked cuffed, or already arrested, or just detained? I feel this story is about to be "laid to rest", without all questions being answered. The payoff & resignation issue is interesting as well. Looks like everyone is going to be forced to draw different conclusions without a full preponderance of the evidence available to the general public.

....you'll see that Officer Barry was cleared of ALL wrongdoing, criminally and internally. That means he broke no laws nor did he violate any departmental policies. He was also found to be physically and mentally fit to return to full duty. So why was he being punished by being kept on a desk nor allowed to return to his part-time work? I'm glad he and his lawyer forced the city's hand. I only wish he had gotten more, maybe a million. Isn't that what Darden's family was paid? He's the one that was ultimately at fault. He left his assigned duty without approval from a supervisor and responded to a volatile situation in plainclothes with NO police identifiers displayed other than his firearm. I say good luck to Officer Barry in his future endeavors. Put this mess of city politicians playing puppeteer behind you and get on with your career!

First of all, why have a police chief making $100K+ if you don't let kim run his department? Because the city manager will not hire a chief who has a set, they want a puppet to do as they please. The city manager didn't want him on the streets. The criminal and internal investigation showed that there was no wrong doing on the part of Barry, however they removed him from his assignment and put him on a desk. That is not beneficial to the city to take a great officer off of the street. Had Darden followed orders and stayed where he was assigned, as ordered, maybe he would be able to chime in on this topic. Obviously, he felt the need to go to this scene. I am not faulting him for that, however, this is a tragic accident, not an event to which blame can be assigned. If it were, two investigations would have indicated that. He didn't though and that's why we are talking about this. Barry did his job and got screwed by the city he gave eight years of service to, I applaud him for a job well done, and surely the citizens of Norfolk asre less safe, having one of it's best leave for a jurisdiction that will surely appreciate his efforts. To Mr. Riddick, you can't fire or charge someone w

It sounds to me that you are a bit delusional! First of all, Seneca and officer Barry were partners for several MONTHS! They used to patrol the area that he shot Seneca that night! Where did you get your information? Do you personally know officer Barry? Well, I personally knew Seneca and many other police officers on the force! You best believe that many BLACK officers expressed concerns over this shooting because they knew that Seneca and officer Barry did not like each other! That is a fact!
Although he was found not guilty of shooting Seneca that night, perhaps there are questions concerning his safety, mental state, and trustworthiness. Face it Ohreally23, do you honestly think that all of his fellow officers will welcome him back with open arms? I know that many of the ones that I have spoken to do not want to partner with him!
One of them even suggested that some officers are on precribed medications and should not be on the streets. Call me ridiculous or anything else you like but there is much more to this story than you are willing to believe! Finally, I am no supporter of the Harvey's, however, the city is responsible if a POLICE dog bites someone who is already under

Mr. Barry gets a fresh start with a resume that says "I shot a fellow police officer in the back, but it wasn't my fault."

And the city says "so long" to an officer it no longer had confidence in. “Management was concerned about putting somebody back into the line of fire who had the unfortunate experience of having shot a fellow officer,” said the city attorney, in a classic understatement.

This story has always been a cause celeb for local racists. Barry is being railroaded they argue. But, if this is such a great injustice, why did Barry agree to resign within 45 days and relinquish any claims against the city? Why did he settle for a measly $57,500 and a “neutral” job reference? And why did his lawyer come away with only $20,000?

Maybe its because the city will now pay a bigger bill to defend Barry against a civil suit focused on the real injustice here.

Officer Barry and Officer Darden were former partners??? Give me a break!!! You make it sound like they spent long hours together. NO! They did not! There were other officers at the scene that night that didn't recognize Officer Darden either. These two men were not partners, they did not spend days and nights riding in the patrol car together.
Also its made to sound Kenneth, like Mr Harvey was detained and in handcuffs when the dog was set on him.....NO! What happened was a sad day for all families involved but don't exaggerate and don't be totally ridiculous with statements.

Sir, Virginia Beach is always looking for good officers and they pay more than Norfolk. Move on, get this behind you and realise Williams and Riddick will continue to run Norfolk in a racist manner.

Am I the only one that finds it ironic that our Miss Manager was "concerned about putting somebody back into the line of fire who had the unfortunate experience of having shot a fellow officer,” ....while apparently she doesn't have any problem with handing a law enforcement oversight role to someone (anyone recall Alphonso?) who shot a man dead and had multiple felony convictions over a long period. Interesting. Somebody explain this to me.

Sorry... Regina's play time is over. Time for adults to run the city with the best intentions for ALL the citizens not just the ones who can't get it together.

The head of the Norfolk city government is not the mayor, but the city manager. If you don't like her decisions then I'd suggest you residents of Norfolk elect an entire new city council. You see no matter how you feel about her she's responsible only the the city council.

So the last time I checked the police chief reports to the city manager. Not to the mayor and not to the city council. According to your city charter he's responsible to her.

As for Officer Barry, it's always has been the option of the employer on how to discipline an individual for whatever the infraction. So while Mr. Barry wasn't found guilty of any criminal offense the may have violated department rules. And his employer, the city manager, has the option of disciplining him anyway they want. And if you'd like to change that let's change the entire state legislature and remove Virginia from the list of right to work states.

I have been saying all along that there is a lot more to this story than people realize! Most of you don't understand that these guys were partners at one time and they had some differences between them! Seneca had expressed concerns over issues within the police department and being the nephew of a former high-ranking police officer was in itself a reason for some of his grief. There were those on the police force who resented both Seneca and his uncle Shelton and made it known to Seneca in obvious ways. I am not going to go into any details of what I know personally; nonetheless, there are many officers on the police force who expressed anger over the shooting and they also wanted to know why officer Barry did not recognize his former partner at only 10 FEET away!
I am not implying anything here; however, you best believe these facts were not lost among the police chief and city officials! Also, I believe that at least one of the Harvey's should be entitled to compensation for the dog biting him while detained! How can the city deny fault when a person is attacked while restrained?

Paul R. Riddick says the black community showed restraint. I'm so sick of Riddick playing the Al Sharpton race card. This was a terrible incident but it has been thoroughly investigated. It's us, the citizens of Norfolk that have exercised restraint in the face of roving gangs, beatings, killings of innocent working people of all races and having to listen to Riddick and his constant drum beat of calling half the citizens of Norfolk a bunch of white hooded cross-burning racist. I intend leaving Norfolk as soon as I can and many others will too but for the present I'm legally packing my protection, something I resort to because I'm getting scared for me and my family. I listen to the race baited comments coming from Riddick and it frightens me, and makes me worried about the future of Norfolk. Riddick is certainly sending our beautiful Norfolk where black, white and brown used to worked together in a wonderful Civic spirit down the toilet. Your comments due great damage Paul, they cause me to close-off the rest of Norfolk and hunker down. Shame Shame Shame on you Paul.

What's alive and well in leadership positions in Norfolk?