Dallas Deputy Sheriff James Westbrook Goes All 'Barney Fife' on Biker

Dallas Deputy Sheriff James Westbrook - This Week's Barney Fife Award Winner

Dallas, Texas

On Sunday, of Memorial Day Weekend, Chris Moore was riding his motorcycle southbound on Stemmons Freeway in Dallas. Moore was one of 50 to 100 sport bike riders. Although he was traveling below the speed limit, Moore happened to have a camera attached to his helmet and was pulled over by Dallas Deputy Sheriff James Westbrook.

Deputy Westbrook says he wanted to see what was on Moore’s camera. From there, things went downhill.

MOORE: "Was I doing something wrong? What am I being pulled over for?"

WESTBROOK: "The whole group of you guys."

MOORE: "No. I was not, individually. How can you pull me over?"

WESTBROOK: "The reason you're being pulled over is because I'm gonna take your camera and we're gonna use it as evidence of the crimes that have been committed by other bikers."

MOORE: "I have not committed any crimes, and you cannot take my personal property from me, sir."

WESTBOOK: "That's fine. Need to see your license and registration."

Once Westbrook returns, he arrests Moore for having a concealed license plate.

WESTBROOK: "You're under arrest for your license plate being obstructed. Place your hands."

MOORE: "Are you kidding me, dude?"

WESTBROOK: "Place your hands behind your back."

As Moore continued to protest, the deputy lost his patience.

MOORE: "Why'd you pull me over in the first place?"

WESTBROOK: "Have a seat, okay?"

MOORE: "Sir. Sir. What you did to me was not right. You know it."

WESTBROOK: "I'm going to ask you one more time to have a seat."

MOORE: "That's f'ed up. Where's my bike going?"

WESTBROOK: "Sit down.I'm telling you to chill out."

Westbrook is then seen on the video shoving Moore into his squad car and slamming the door forcefully.

The Sheriff’s office, after news reports surfaced, has decided to investigate.



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Dallas County Sheriff’s Deputy James Yarbrough Resigns Amid Allegations He Tipped Off Target of Raid

Dallas County, Texas

Dallas County deputy sheriff James Yarbrough is enjoying a break from the hectic police pace after resigning Friday. However, if what his fellow comrades say is true, his leisure time may become more stressful soon.

Yarbrough’s resignation came after being confronted with allegations that he tipped-off a business that was going to be raided by a special task force. The business in question is an auto body shop. The special task force goes after businesses that sell counterfeit vehicle-inspection stickers and flout vehicle-inspection laws.

Sheriff Lupe Valdez said that when people know they’re going to be raided by the police, they could plan an ambush of their own, resulting in a potentially deadly situation.

“This could have been tragic for us,” Valdez said, adding that it thankfully didn’t happen in this case. “My officers could have been hurt.”

The sheriff confirms that the investigation of James Yarbrough is ongoing and could result in criminal charges if the allegations are true.

Corpus Christi Police Officer Robert Lee McChester ‘The Molester’ Back in Jail After Bond Revoked

Robert Lee McChester Pleaded Guilty to Molesting 14-Year-Old Girl

Corpus Christi, Texas

A former Corpus Christi police officer who was arrested back in April for molesting a 14-year-old girl is back in jail, after his bond was revoked.

Robert Lee McChester Jr., 27, will be staying put this time around at the Aransas County Jail until an Aug. 30 sentencing hearing. The officer pleaded guilty last week to charges of using the Internet to sexually entice a minor.

McChester was arrested Friday on a warrant stating he perjured himself during a hearing the day before.

During the Thursday hearing, McChester answered questions about investigator’s findings, including nearly a dozen driver’s licenses found at his home.

McChester said he had obtained the licenses in 2007, while working as a doorman for a local nightclub.

Police investigators later discovered two of the licenses were issued in 2010, while a third was issued in 2011.

Senior Officer Christopher Lynch, an investigator with the Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, testified Monday he was able to reach two of the people whose licenses were found.

One woman told Lynch an officer matching McChester’s description took her license before letting her go in May 2011 during an early-morning traffic stop.

Another man said his license was confiscated by an officer matching a description of McChester during an April 2010 traffic stop in which he also was released, Lynch said.

Corpus Christi police records list McChester as the officer who made those stops, Lynch testified.

McChester exchanged sexually-charged messages online with a 14-year-old girl for about a year and met her for sex nearly half a dozen times before the teen made an outcry April 3 at a Corpus Christi hospital, according to a federal affidavit.

The girl said their ongoing relationship began when she met McChester while she was a freshman at Tuloso-Midway High School, where McChester worked as a security officer, according to court records.

McChester was arrested April 10 following the filing of a criminal complaint and resigned from the Police Department the next day. He faces 10 years to life in prison.

Racism or Poor Job Performance: Either Way, Jasper Police Chief Rodney Pearson Given The Boot

Jasper Police Chief Rodney Pearson

Jasper, Texas

The first black police chief of an East Texas town made infamous for a 1998 hate crime dragging death has been fired over poor job performance.

The Jasper City Council on Monday night voted 4-1 to dismiss Chief Rodney Pearson, who was hired last year.

May elections put new members on the Jasper City Council, replacing some elected officials who backed Pearson. City council members planned to meet Tuesday afternoon and choose an interim police chief.

Florence Police Chief Julie Elliot-Abshire Got Gun Happy: Accused of Shooting Two Pet Dogs and Into Family’s Home

Florence, Texas

Caren Vybiral says she was watching a movie with her two year old daughter Lilly when gunshots rang out. She thought they were coming from across the street.

"Thought maybe Chevron was being robbed or something. I didn't have any idea what was going on," Caren Vybiral said. "And when I walked to open the door, there was another gun shot."

Just outside of the open door, one of the family’s pet dogs Sassy was laying on the porch, covered in blood. Standing above her was Florence Police Chief Julie Elliot-Abshire. After a short exchange, Caren said the chief ran to the back yard and shot the other family dog that was locked up, a two year old pit bull named Boomer.

"I asked her what is going on."

According to Vybiral, Chief Elliot-Abshire said, “Bitch, did you not hear me knocking on your front door?”

Apparently Sassy and Boomer got out of the back yard and walked to the Chevron. A city worker called the cops to report the loose dogs. A family friend put the dogs back into the yard, but Sassy got out again.

"It got out, I'm guilty of that, but it was laying on the porch when she shot it," Caren’s mother, Louise Vybiral said.

But what truly frightens this family, one of the shots went into the home. Fragments of a bullet still lie on the windowsill.

"For an officer of the law to come up into your yard, and fire a shot, or to draw her weapon and aim it towards a home. That shot could have hurt my granddaughter or my daughter, you know. I mean the bullet is in my house," Vybiral said.

"The bullet hole is only two feet from where we were standing, so I mean, it could have been us," added Caren.

Austin television station KVUE attempted to talk with the Chief of Police, but only found a locked door.

"She doesn't need to be an officer. She's not upholding the law. Just because she wears a badge doesn't mean she can pull her gun and just shoot anything," Vybiral said.

The Williamson County Sheriff's Office said they are aware that an incident involving the police chief happened in Florence, but it's not their jurisdiction. The Texas Rangers say they are not yet involved in the case.

Aransas Pass Police Officer Accused of Beating Suspect

Aransas Pass, Texas

A police officer is under investigation after a cell phone video that appears to show two officers hitting a man surfaced.

The video, which was given to a local TV station, appears to show at least two officers kicking and punching Matias Vera III following a recent vehicle pursuit. Vera was arrested and charged with drug possession, assaulting a public servant and evading arrest.

Captain Roberto Gonzales Jr. said a sergeant who assisted in the arrest told supervisors the next day that he was concerned another officer might have acted inappropriately during the struggle with the suspect.

The officer being investigated, whose name has not yet been released, has not been placed on any kind of administrative leave, Gonzales said. Although the video shows at least two officers involved in the struggle, only one is being investigated.

In addition to the video 6 News brought to the police department's attention, they are also looking at four dash camera videos from police cruisers to get a better idea of what happened.

Dallas City Council Approves $500,000 Settlement for Motorcyclist Whose Beating Was Caught on Police Dash-Cam

Dallas, Texas

The Dallas City Council recently voted to pay $500,000 to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit in the beating by police officers of a motorcyclist.

The incident happened in September 2010, involving a chase between motorcyclist Andrew Collins and Dallas Police. The beating was captured on the dashboard cameras of the responding officers, including Paul Bauer, Henry Duetsch and Kevin Randolph, all of whom were fired after the incident.

The City Council approved the settlement without discussion. A city attorney has declined to comment on the case.

“It was a good resolution to a bad situation,” said Collins’ attorney, Don Tittle. “It was an acknowledgment from the city that Mr. Collins’ civil rights had been seriously violated.”

Criminal charges are pending against the three former officers.

According to police, Bauer and Randolph spotted Collins riding his motorcycle on a South Dallas sidewalk. He fled from them. A police sergeant ordered the officers not to give chase, but they ignored the order, authorities have said.

The chase ended a short distance later when a patrol car clipped Collins’ motorcycle. An offense report written by Randolph did not indicate that the squad car had hit Collins. Instead, it stated that the officers simply found him “wrecked out.”

According to the lawsuit, Collins dropped to the ground and spread his arms and legs and was not resisting when officers tried to take him into custody.

Dash-cam footage showed Randolph striking Collins at least four times with his baton and Bauer hitting him with his fists and knee. The officers accused Collins of resisting arrest and said they hit him to get him under control.

A short time later, Duetsch arrived at the scene. Another car’s video showed Duetsch adjusting a camera, allegedly in an effort to conceal a portion of the arrest.