Pacific Police Sgt. Jim Pickett has stepped down as the City’s acting police chief.

In an e-mail to Pacific Mayor Cy Sun, members of the Pacific Council, Pacific Police personnnel and the department’s Teamster’s Union 117 representative, Pickett cited among the reasons for his resignation Sun’s “expressed decline of trust in me and your belief that I am working against you.”

“…I believe it is in the best interest of the Pacific Police Department and the City of Pacific that I now step down from my role as acting chief of police and return to my position as sergeant,” Pickett wrote.

Pickett went on to cite his involvement with the recent lock-out of City Clerk Jane Montgomery. On June 9, he wrote, after Montgomery filed a whistleblower complaint detailing her concerns about an unauthorized Sun appointee signing off on building permits and inspections, that Sun had asked him to serve her with two letters.

According to Pickett, one letter placed Montgomery on administrative leave, and the other informed her of an upcoming Loudermill hearing, which is part of the due-process procedure for government employees before disciplinary action. Pickett added that Sun told him to deliver the letters to Montgomery at her home.

After consulting with the City attorney, Pickett wrote, he was advised that serving Montgomery at home would, “border on harrasment, and might be illegal.”

According to the e-mail, Pickett worried about “being drawn into a pit of unethical behavior.”

Lt. Edwin Massey, who was the acting police chief before Pickett, is now the department’s highest ranking officer. Massey – who was named the department’s acting chief after Sun placed former-Chief Jon Calkins on adminstrative leave in January – was removed from the acting chief post by Sun in April.