Police chief’s integrity at issue

Jacksonville aldermen have expressed concern over the city’s decision to hire a man with a misdemeanor criminal conviction as its new police chief.

The city hired Geoffrey Herweg, deputy chief of the Lovington Police Department in New Mexico, after a national search to replace Police Chief Kenny Boyd.

Boyd, who had been police chief since 2014, retired April 1. Herweg, 53, is scheduled to be sworn in Friday.

Herweg pleaded guilty to filing a false police report and failure to report an accident in Williamson County, Texas, in 2002, according to court records obtained by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. An affidavit filed by the county attorney’s office states that Herweg, on Christmas Eve in 2000, was driving and “became involved in an accident” that damaged a house and a car.

Herweg left the vehicle at the scene and told police it had been stolen, according to the affidavit. He was arrested after investigators determined that he’d “wrecked and abandoned the vehicle” and knowingly lied about it.

Herweg, who had been employed by the Taylor (Texas) Police Department for seven years, was sentenced to three days in jail, paid a $2,000 fine and permanently surrendered his state law enforcement certification as part of his guilty plea, according to court filings.

A misdemeanor conviction does not disqualify a person from becoming a certified law enforcement officer in Arkansas.

Mayor Gary Fletcher on Friday defended his decision to hire Herweg. He said Herweg has a long list of credentials and will be the most educated person to lead the Police Department.

“I am staking my credibility on this man’s credibility,” Fletcher said.

Alderman Tara Smith said Herweg’s criminal record raises questions about his integrity. She noted that Jacksonville police, like most law enforcement agencies, has a written policy against dishonesty.

“It’s alarming to me that this is who the city of Jacksonville mayor and city administration have chosen to lead our Police Department,” she said.

Alderman James Bolden said Herweg’s past was troubling.

“That definitely raises concerns,” he said.

Herweg told a reporter that he did not have time Friday to comment, but might have time to talk over the weekend or next week.

Jacksonville officials said Herweg was among 31 people who applied for the position of police chief. The Democrat-Gazette requested those applications under the state Freedom of Information Act, but the city had not released them late Friday.

According to Herweg’s LinkedIn profile, he holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s degree in business administration from University of the Southwest, a private university in New Mexico.

He spent eight years in the Texas Army National Guard.

After his conviction, Herweg moved to Arizona and worked as a security guard at the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station. He also worked as an aviation dispatcher in Arizona.

Armor Group International, a private security firm, hired Herweg in 2007 as a supervisor on an emergency response team under contract at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan.

He worked for another military contractor, Tennessee-based EOD Technology, in Baghdad in 2009.

Herweg moved to South Carolina in 2010 and worked for Yale Enforcement Services, another private security company.

He joined the Lovington Police Department in 2012 and became deputy chief in 2015.

Lovington is a city of roughly 11,000 residents. The Police Department has 28 officers.

Smith said she was against the decision to hire Herweg not only because of his criminal record, but also because he had not worked at a police department the size of Jacksonville’s. The city of roughly 28,300 residents employs 80 officers.

“I’ve made it very clear to my fellow aldermen that I do not support this decision by our administration,” Smith said.

Fletcher said Fire Department Chief Alan Laughy, Director of Human Resources Jill Ross and Director of Administration Jim Durham were directly involved in the final interviews for police chief and unanimously agreed with his decision to pick Herweg.

Fletcher said Herweg was upfront with city officials about his conviction. He said those raising concerns about the hire are trying to embarrass the city and have “personal” motivations against him and his administration.

Alderman Les Collins said he was initially concerned about Herweg’s conviction, but Herweg’s military credentials assuaged his worries.

“All of those required him to have public security clearance actions, so I’m actually pretty comfortable about the answers I got about what went on with the police department,” he said.

Former Jacksonville Police Chief Gary Sipes, who led the department from 2008 to 2014, said Herweg’s conviction could cause problems if Herweg has to testify in a case.

“His integrity is going to be questioned and he’s going to have to prove himself,” he said.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Brady v. Maryland in 1963 that prosecutors are required to notify a defendant if a law enforcement officer involved in a case has knowingly lied in an official capacity.

The designation as a socalled Brady officer usually comes after a law enforcement agency has investigated and proved an accusation of dishonesty against an officer. Legal experts and national police groups say those lawmen face credibility issues in court for the rest of their career.