The Texas police division that arrested a mom for criticizing the city’s soiled consuming water on social media has been ordered to disband after the state dominated that it supplied no “profit to the neighborhood.”
The Texas Fee on Legislation Enforcement despatched Trinidad Mayor Dennis Haws a letter on Sept. 9 revoking the town’s license to function its personal police division — figuring out the division had “failed to satisfy minimal requirements” as a regulation enforcement entity, KETK reported.
The motion adopted an Aug. 5 investigation wherein the division was discovered “unable to offer proof that the company gives public profit to the neighborhood” and lacked 18 required insurance policies, together with ones on use of pressure, automobile pursuit, skilled conduct and energetic shooters, the fee mentioned.
The investigation into the division was triggered after Jennifer Combs was arrested for felony false alarm or report and tossed in jail for an evening in Might following a Fb submit alleging that micro organism in Trinidad’s water pipes had hospitalized residents.
Police defended the arrest, claiming Combs’ submit had created “concern, panic, or pointless emergency response inside a neighborhood” — regardless of the town itself posting a discover urging residents to boil their water to “keep away from dangerous micro organism” on April 21, weeks earlier than her arrest.
Regardless of the mounting contradictions, Trinidad Police Chief Charles Gregory doubled down — calling the case in opposition to Combs “reduce and dry.”
Police additionally arrested a supporter of Combs, citizen journalist Winston Noles, for misdemeanor disorderly conduct after he displayed a “f–ok dangerous cops” signal exterior metropolis corridor, FOX 4 reported.
Combs’ arrest rapidly drew nationwide consideration, prompting Gregory to drop the felony cost in opposition to her and the state to launch its investigation into the division.
The cost in opposition to Noles was additionally dropped.
Gregory resigned on June 19 — regardless of telling a Trinidad Metropolis Council assembly he had “nothing to cover” relating to the arrests of Combs and Noles, Fox 4 reported.
After his resignation, the choose who authorized Combs’ search warrant wrote a scathing letter questioning “the accuracy, completeness, and reliability of knowledge” two Trinidad officers had offered to him and Gregory’s management.
The Henderson County District Lawyer’s Workplace introduced in August it could cease taking circumstances from the division following the state’s investigation.
Individually, the Texas Fee on Environmental High quality discovered points with Trinidad’s water provide — the very concern Combs had raised — which metropolis officers have since promised to handle.
Following the information that the division would disband, Combs wrote on Fb that “for months, residents who questioned this division have been dismissed, attacked and in my case arrested.”
“Now the state company chargeable for regulating Texas regulation enforcement has confirmed that this division couldn’t exhibit compliance with even the minimal requirements,” she mentioned. “We have been by no means the issue. We have been exposing it.”
Haws additionally mentioned he was “not a shock” that the state determined to disband the division.
“There’s been loads of neglect by means of the years,” Haws advised FOX 4 Information. “We’re transferring in a optimistic course. We’ve bought to get previous all of this.”
The Trinidad Police Division — serving a municipality in Henderson County about 75 miles southeast of Dallas — has 5 full-time officers and several other part-time officers and can formally shut its doorways for good on Friday.
The Henderson County Sheriff’s Workplace will deal with all regulation enforcement requires Trinidad — a metropolis of simply over 800 folks, based on the 2024 census.
