Beating of Elderly Man By El Paso Cop Leads to 15k Lawsuit Payout

El Paso, Texas

In the last two years, the city has paid out almost $600,000 from lawsuits against the police department. One lawsuit involves an elderly man who says he was beaten by an undercover police officer. The city agreed to pay him $15,000.

The man who says he was beat up is now almost 81 years old. He says the officer, Joshua Cass, who's six feet, three inches tall, and weighs in at 270 pounds, beat him until he was unconscious. When the man woke up he was in handcuffs.

The lawsuit says in his three years on the force, Officer Cass had twelve internal affairs complaints filed against him, several for excessive force.

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San Antonio Officer Guilty In Assault, Manslaughter Case Involving Reckless Crash

San Antonio, Texas

Former San Antonio Police Officer David Seaton became a felon Monday after jurors in his high-profile trial found him guilty of recklessly causing a high-speed crash that killed a colleague.

Seaton, 45, who had been with the department for two years when the Nov. 28, 2008, wreck occurred, stared somberly as state District Judge Sid Harle read the verdicts.

Jurors took less than two hours to find him guilty of two counts of aggravated assault by a police officer, which is punishable by up to life in prison, and one count of manslaughter, for which he faces up to 20 years in prison.

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Dallas Police Officer Charged with Thanksgiving DWI

Dallas, Texas

Fort Worth police on Thursday arrested a Dallas police officer for alleged drunken driving.

Officer Anastasia Brown, 34, is charged with driving while intoxicated.

Few details are known, but according to Fort Worth police records, officers found Brown in a vehicle at the intersection of Interstate 20 and Campus Drive. Brown's vehicle had reportedly sustained a flat front, left tire and was immobile.

After approaching Brown, officers determined that she was intoxicated and arrested her.

Dallas police said Brown has been on the department for three years and is assigned to the South Central Patrol Division.

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Houston Police Sued By Family of Doctor Killed By Officer Speeding Without Lights or Siren

Houston, Texas

The family of a doctor killed in a wreck with a Houston Police Department cruiser has filed a lawsuit against the city.

In a statement released Thursday, the heirs of Dr. Estala Medrano said they are asking for unspecified damages relating to physical pain, mental anguish, medical expenses, and funeral expenses.

The crash occurred on Aug. 30 around 12:30 a.m. According to HPD, the officer involved in the crash was responding to an emergency when his cruiser slammed into the couple’s Scion.

Police said the officer was on a Code 2 response, which means it was a high priority call without any siren on or emergency lights flashing.

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Edinburg Texas Cop Accused of Releasing Woman From Jail In Exchange For Sex: Police Say His Suspension Is Unrelated

Edinburg, Texas


Police are investigating after an officer was accused of having sex with an inmate.

According to court documents, the officer is accused of using his position to have sex.

The woman was in jail for robbery, and she had an ongoing relationship with the officer.

According to the court documents the officer allegedly offered her freedom quote pending further investigation end quote.

That's when the woman allegedly offered sex. The pair went into the police department's conference room and they each performed sex acts.

The next day the inmate was released.

The officer is on administrative leave.

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Houston Metro Police Admits Failure of Motorist Assist Program Following News Investigation

Houston, Texas

"No one was watching the GPS on a daily basis," said Tom Lambert, vice president of METRO's police department, admitting that each vehicle is outfitted with satellite tracking equipment.

Lambert said managers were not watching because they received no complaints and had no reason to suspect workers were avoiding their duty.

Over a two-month period, Local 2 Investigates found several METRO Motorist Assistance Program workers avoiding their duties of patrolling Houston freeways for stranded drivers. Hidden cameras found one driver parking his truck at the same restaurant day after day, sometimes leaving to head to another lunch break with other MAP employees.

A 31-year veteran worker resigned his position after Local 2 Investigates found him visiting numerous X-rated video stores while on duty. He was also recorded spending hours leaned back in his truck in hidden parking lots.

A criminal investigation was launched into veteran worker David Richard after his daily work records reflected 11 different stranded motorists being helped, during times that Local 2 Investigates found him elsewhere, sometimes across town.

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Dallas Police Officer Suspended For Lying To Judge

Dallas, Texas

A Dallas police officer recently received a 15-day suspension after internal investigators concluded he failed to show up to testify in court and then lied about his actions.

Police Officer Wayne Starks was disciplined during Sept. 30 hearing. He can appeal the decision.

According to internal affairs records released this week, Starks was sworn in to testify at a DWI trial in April 2010.

When the trial was continued into a second day, Starks told the judge that he could not be there due to a personal issue. The judge ordered starts to appear in court and told him to make arrangements for his personal issue.

On the following day, Starks did not show up as the judge had instructed. Starks later told a supervisor that he had been involved in an accident and a relative was in the car with him. He also told the supervisor that his cell phone was left in his towed vehicle and that was why he was unreachable.

Starks later admitted that he had lied about his relative being in the vehicle with him at the time of the accident, that his vehicle was towed and that his cell phone was left in the towed vehicle, internal affairs records show.

The internal investigation also found that Starks lied to a county court prosecutor regarding his reason for missing court.

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Plano Cop Blames His Gun-Mounted Flashlight In Fatal Shooting of Suspect

Plano, Texas

A Plano narcotics sergeant intended to activate a flashlight affixed to his service weapon when he accidentally pulled the trigger, fatally shooting a drug suspect in a Far North Dallas parking lot last month, the officer told investigators.

"I never intended to fire my weapon," the sergeant said in a statement to Dallas police detectives following the Oct. 13 shooting of suspected drug dealer Michael Anthony Alcala, 25. "I never intended to have my finger on the trigger. I was only attempting to operate the flashlight mechanism."

The officer, who remains on administrative leave, is not being identified because he works undercover.

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Fort Worth Officer Gets 20 Years For Intoxication Manslaughter - Killing Mother Of Two

Fort Worth, Texas

A Tarrant County jury sentenced former Fort Worth police narcotics officer Jesus Cisneros to 20 years in prison Thursday afternoon, hours after he pled guilty to driving drunk when he killed Sonia Baker, a mother of two, last December.

At the judge's instruction, the jury found him guilty and the punishment phase of the trial began. About 4:15 p.m., the jury returned the 20-year sentence, the maximum on the charge.

The former officer had a 0.17 blood-alcohol level - more than twice the legal limit - and was driving 76 mph in a 35 mph zone.

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San Saba Sheriff Could Face Investigation For Misconduct - Citizens and Tourists Raise Complaints

San Saba, Texas

A Central Texas Sheriff could face an investigation for official misconduct.

On Monday, the City Council of San Saba, about 80 miles west of Killeen, voted three-to-one to turn over statements accusing Sheriff Allen Brown of misconduct to a district attorney.

Allegations made by San Saba citizens accuse Brown of pulling over motorists without cause, and disrupting business and tourism.

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Photo: KXAN-TV Austin

Orange Police Officer Involved In Fatal Shooting 'Indefinitely Suspended'

Orange, Texas

An Orange police officer who shot a West Orange man to death after a disturbance at an auto parts store has been indefinitely suspended.

Capt. Robert Arnold fatally shot James Whitehead, 28, outside an O'Reilly Auto Parts store July 26, according to Enterprise archives. Arnold was not on duty at the time.

Whitehead had been arguing with the store's employees while trying to return an item, according to reports.

Chief Sam Kittrell decided on the indefinite suspension Wednesday after an internal review of the incident, according to an Orange Police Department news release.

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San Antonio Park Cop Pleads No Contest In Plea Deal For Molesting Teen

San Antonio, Texas

A former San Antonio Park Police officer pleads no contest to the sexual assault of a child. Investigators say 42-year-old Ricardo Rodriguez had sex multiple times with a teenage family member. Rodriguez surrendered his peace officer's license and applied for deferred adjudication which is a form of probation. Sentencing is set for January 11th.

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Galveston Internal Affairs Officer Suspended For Unknown Reason

Galveston, Texas

The city police officer who until last month was head of the department’s internal affairs office was suspended from duty Friday until further notice.

Sgt. Michael Gray, who was a lieutenant until the city’s budget cuts a week ago reduced him and several other officers in rank, said he was told of the suspension one day after being relieved of his police ID card and escorted from the police station by Capt. Jeff Heyse.

The Daily News has seen a copy of the sergeant’s suspension letter. It contained no reason for the suspension and told him to remain available to report to the police station between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. each weekday.

Police Chief Charles Wiley declined to comment, saying he "would be a fool" to speak to the media about personnel matters because of litigation against him by Galveston Municipal Police Association.

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Sansom Park Police Chief And 3 Officers Accused of Corruption - All Resign Ahead of Termination

Police Chief Tony White

Officer Andrew Young

Sgt. Thomas Milner

Note: Photo of Josh Smith not available

Sansom Park, Texas

Police Chief Tony White and three of his officers have abruptly resigned after a long list of allegations were filed against them, including displaying photos at the police station of a rape victim's injuries, padding time cards to boost their pay and letting officers patrol the city without proper supervision.

One of the officers, Sgt. Thomas Milner, also is accused of giving known pedophiles a juvenile's home address while in a chat room in hopes of luring the individuals to the home as part of a sex sting operation.

The allegations were detailed in a complaint sent to the Sansom Park City Council in September and signed by five fellow officers, who stated that they had lost confidence in White's ability to supervise officers and manage the department.

"Chief White does not try to control dishonesty and allows unethical activity to take place," the officers wrote. Those actions, they said, created what they described as a "hostile environment."

To avoid being fired, White, 41, Milner, 42, and officers Andrew Young, 28, and Josh Smith, 32, submitted resignation letters after the city placed White on administrative leave and began termination procedures on the other officers.

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Houston Motorcycle Riders Say They Are Being Targeted By Police Officer

Houston, Texas

Some Houston bikers admit they can look intimidating.

"I'm not a criminal," says one biker. "I may look like one but I'm not a criminal."

But he and scores of other bike riders say they're being targeted by veteran Houston Police officer Rick Holtsclaw.

They say they're being harassed by Holtsclaw because they ride motorbikes. And none of these bikers seem to know why. "This guy's got a rub against somebody that has ridden a motorcycle before and he's carrying it to the beat," one biker believes.

Officer Holtsclaw is using the city’s noise ordinance as the backbone of his quick trigger on writing tickets.

According to a police union official, Holtsclaw's supervisor and a city prosecutor questioned whether the city's noisy vehicle ordinance could be used against motorcycles calling it a "gray area.” But a city legal opinion ruled it was enforceable and that cleared the way for Holtsclaw to continue writing bike riders tickets.

The officer, according to reports, has written 200 citations for noisy vehicles in the last 9 months.

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Austin Cop Fired,Rehired, Then Fired Again Has Been Arrested On Multiple Counts Related To 2009 DV Incident

Leander, Texas

Leander police on Tuesday arrested Leonardo Quintana, a regular on this blog lately, on one count of criminal trespass, two counts of assault, family violence with bodily injury and one count of criminal mischief. Quintana posted $8,000 bail and was released.

Here's a rundown on his troubles:

He was surrounded in suspicion in connection with a 2009 fatal shooting of Nathaniel Sanders II during a struggle. Quintana was fired in May after his arrest in an unrelated drunken driving case.

He was reinstated by an arbitrator, then fired again Oct. 27 after an internal investigation into the alleged domestic disturbance call that led to this week's charges.

Pretty soon, he'll have his own dedicated page here.

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El Paso Cop Disciplined For Beating Motorcyclist, With City Offering $15k Settlement

El Paso, Texas

A city employee says he was beaten up by a cop after he was stopped because his license plate wasn't visible. The officer claimed he was evading arrest.

The two officers involved are Steven Smith and Charles Romo. There is a video, with Officer Smith making comments.

Officer Smith received a 20-hour paid suspension. But this wasn't the first complaint filed against Smith. At the time of the incident, he had 10 complaints filed against him. Back in 2002, Smith left work early, saying he was sick. But hours later, he was involved in a bar fight. He was later suspended for unprofessional conduct and violating their sick leave policy. Then again in 2004, he was asked by a civilian to move a shopping cart in a Wal-Mart parking lot. The situation escalated into a fight and smith was once again suspended.

The city has agreed to a $15k settlement.

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Corpus Christi Police Officer Arrested, But Authorities Are Remaining Tight-Lipped

Corpus Christi, Texas

The Corpus Christi Police Department has revealed that an officer was arrest on November 2nd by the Ingleside Police Department.

The circumstances of the arrest nor the charges against Senior Officer Jeff Davis were included in news release issued Monday afternoon.

Davis is now on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation by CCPD.

The criminal investigation is being handled by the Ingleside Police Department.

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Dallas Police Officer Charged With DWI After Arrest In Murphy

Dallas, Texas

A Dallas police officer has been charged with driving while intoxicated after a Saturday night arrest.

Officer Brandy Lindsey was arrested after a traffic stop by police in Murphy. Details of the arrest were not available Sunday.

Lindsey, 28, is a patrol officer at the northeast division and joined the Dallas Police Department in February 2006.

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Burkburnett Police Officer Found Guilty of Record Tampering: Must Surrender Police Certification

Burkburnett, Texas

Brad Boyd, a police officer with the Burkburnett Police Department must surrender his Texas law enforcement certification for three years, as prescribed by the terms of a plea agreement.

Boyd, 49, entered a plea of nolo contendre to a Class A misdemeanor count of tampering with a governmental record related to an incident Feb. 29, 2008. The paperwork shows the verdict for the offense is guilty.

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Harris County Jail Officer Charged After Drug Sting

Houston, Texas

A Harris County jailer has been accused of taking prescription drugs into the lockup, according to officials.

Detention Officer Henry L. Fairley, 51, is charged with possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and introducing contraband into a penal institution, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

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El Paso Police Officer Indicted For Sexually Assaulting An Unconscious Woman

El Paso, Texas

Of course she didn’t resist, she was unconscious moron!

El Paso Police Officer Mark Munoz (Pebble Hills Division) has been indicted on charges of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman, according to court documents.

Munoz was honored earlier in the year for saving a man’s severed arm. No word yet on whether any fondling occurred in that case (just kidding).

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Dallas Officer Who Shot And Killed An Unarmed Man And Injured 11-Year Old Boy Under Investigation

Dallas, Texas

Officer Matthew Tate, after responding to a call, stated that he was confronted by a man in a breezeway. The officer’s report says the man had his hands behind his back, but did not comply with instructions and made gestures that caused Tate to open fire. The victim, Tobias Arthur Mackey died from the gunshot wounds. Investigators confirm that the dead man did not have a weapon. Also, an 11-year old boy, not involved in the incident, was hit by a round from the officer’s gun.

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