CLEVELAND — Former East Cleveland Police Chief Kenneth Lundy appeared in court Wednesday morning after a grand jury indicted him on 31 criminal counts tied to alleged misconduct during his time as a law enforcement officer.
Lundy entered a not guilty plea during his arraignment hearing. The judge set a $10,000 bond and ordered him to have no contact with the named complainants. The court also required Lundy to wear a GPS monitor, with exclusion zones placed around the complainants’ homes and workplaces.
A pre-trial hearing has been set for April 22 at 9 a.m.
Earlier, on Wednesday, March 25, a Cuyahoga County grand jury indicted Lundy on 31 criminal counts.
“No one is above the law, especially those who are sworn to uphold it. Former East Cleveland Police Chief Kenneth Lundy’s actions represent a complete abuse of power and betrayal of the public’s trust. We will hold anyone who engages in public corruption fully accountable,” said Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley following the indictment.
In July 2025, then-East Cleveland Mayor Lateek Shabazz terminated Lundy. At the time, Shabazz said a review “uncovered multiple violations of Ohio civil service laws and East Cleveland ordinances regarding his appointment and promotions.”
Lundy was indicted on the following charges:
- Three counts of bribery
- One count of intimidation of an attorney, victim or witness in a criminal case
- One count of perjury
- One count of complicity to commit perjury
- Four counts of interfering with civil rights
- Four counts of dereliction of duty
- One count of falsification
- One count of obstructing official business
- One count of menacing by stalking
- Two counts of assault
- One count of aggravated menacing
- One count of trespass into a habitation when a person is present or likely to be present
- One count of vandalism
- One count of unauthorized use of the law enforcement automated database system
- One count of unauthorized use of computer, cable or telecommunications property
- One count of possessing criminal tools
- Three counts of theft in office
- Three counts of tampering with records
The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office outlined the following alleged crimes that Lundy was involved in.
CASE DETAILS
JERRY SIMS INVESTIGATION
According to prosecutors, many of the allegations arise from Lundy’s involvement in a homicide investigation that took place between October 2017 and November 2019.
During that period, Lundy—then working as a detective—investigated the killing of Jamar Forkland and worked closely with a witness, Erica Campbell.
Prosecutors allege Lundy formed an intimate relationship with Campbell “to pressure, intimidate, and provide financially for the witness with the motivation to have her provide evidence and testimony implicating Jerry Sims in the homicide.”
Authorities say Lundy urged Campbell to alter her original statement and give testimony implicating Sims, despite allegedly knowing her statements were false. Prosecutors also claim Lundy did not disclose the relationship during grand jury and trial proceedings.
Sims was later convicted, but that conviction has since been vacated. Campbell has been indicted on one count of perjury, and her case remains pending.
Prosecutors further allege Lundy later engaged in abusive behavior toward Campbell.
“Detective Lundy engaged in physically violent acts, damaged property, trespassed, and other conduct that caused her mental and emotional abuse, including, on one occasion, pointing a weapon at her and threatening her and his life,” the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office wrote in a press release.
In January 2025, Sims filed a petition for post-conviction relief. Prosecutors say that during the investigation, Lundy lied to investigators about the relationship, providing false statements that obstructed the case review.
DECEMBER 2016 BRIBERY
Between Dec. 17 and Dec. 20, 2016, Lundy allegedly agreed to drop charges in a drug case in exchange for a Chevrolet Tahoe valued at approximately $50,000, which he then used for personal and police purposes.
JANUARY 2018 BRIBERY
From Jan. 4 to Jan. 12, 2018, prosecutors say Lundy demanded $10,000 from a suspect in exchange for reduced charges and falsifying official police documents. From December 17 to 20, 2016, following a minor drug arrest, Detective Lundy allegedly agreed to drop all charges against the suspect in exchange for her father’s Chevrolet Tahoe, valued at approximately $50,000. The vehicle was then used by Detective Lundy as both a police and personal vehicle.
ECPD TRUST ACCOUNT
Between Aug. 28 and Sept. 14, Lundy is accused of withdrawing $3,000 from the department’s trust account designated for investigative purposes and depositing it into his personal bank account.
LUNDY’S FIRING
Following his termination in July 2025, Shabazz stated that Lundy had been appointed to a classified police position in 2016 and later promoted to sergeant, lieutenant, captain, and acting chief “without completion of the required competitive civil service examinations and from an eligibility list.”
Additionally, East Cleveland ordinances prohibit individuals appointed to temporary classified acting positions from serving more than 180 days within a calendar year.
“These violations are incurable and expose the City to significant liability,” Shabazz said in a statement. “We have a duty to uphold Ohio law, our charter and our own ordinances. Ensuring that our police department operates lawfully under our state constitution’s civil service mandates is essential to protecting the public, the employee and protecting the City from legal liability.”
In his letter to Lundy, Shabazz also accused the former acting police chief of becoming “romantically involved with the girlfriend of a homicide suspect you were investigating, without disclosing your live-in relationship with her to Cuyahoga County prosecutors.” He added that such behavior “is not the mindset of someone I want managing police going forward.”
“He can’t be working under me with those types of qualities,” Shabazz later said in his press conference. “I suggested some things to the police and they acted like they didn’t know what I was talking about. I took that as disrespect.”
Lundy served as the city’s acting police chief from Jan. 2, 2024 until his firing. He was appointed to replace the suspended Brian Gerhard amid allegations that he shared racist, antisemitic, and homophobic memes and images. Gerhard, who replaced the since-convicted Scott Gardner, officially resigned in July of 2024.
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