Police chief in central Arkansas removed from post pending outcome of trial

Judge removes Herweg from post until trial in hiring suit

Jacksonville Police Chief Geoffrey Herweg (left) leaves Pulaski County Circuit Court with Jacksonville City Attorney Robert Bamburg on Thursday after a judge ruled Herweg cannot serve as the city’s top police officer until a trial resolves questions about whether a 16-yearold misdemeanor conviction disqualiÿes him under Arkansas law.
Jacksonville Police Chief Geoffrey Herweg (left) leaves Pulaski County Circuit Court with Jacksonville City Attorney Robert Bamburg on Thursday after a judge ruled Herweg cannot serve as the city’s top police officer until a trial resolves questions about whether a 16-yearold misdemeanor conviction disqualiÿes him under Arkansas law.

Pulaski County Circuit Judge Alice Gray removed Jacksonville's new police chief from the position, at least for the time being, ruling on Thursday that Geoffrey Herweg is barred from holding the job by the Arkansas Constitution.

Herweg's 14-year-old misdemeanor criminal conviction for lying to police in Texas violates Article 5, Section 9, which prohibits anyone convicted of an "infamous crime" from holding "any office of trust or profit in this state," Gray announced at a hearing.

"The court finds that Herweg's 2002 Texas conviction makes him incapable of holding the office of police chief of the city of Jacksonville," she said. "Public trust in the integrity of our law enforcement officials is essential to the preservation of the public peace and for the enforcement of laws and ordinances.

"This trust and confidence is shaken by casting even the slightest suspicion against the professional character and integrity of a police chief. It would not be an appropriate exercise of authority for Herweg to carry out the essential responsibilities of a police chief, including but not limited to enforcing laws, ordinances and regulations, while he, himself, is illegally holding that office."

Infamous crimes have been defined by the courts to include misdemeanor convictions that involve a defendant committing "an act of deceit, fraud or false statement," the judge said.

Herweg can continue to work for the city, but he can't be police chief or be paid his $81,000 annual salary, at least until the question of the legality of his employment as chief can be fully argued at a trial that has yet to be scheduled, Gray said.

Jacksonville contends that the constitution only covers elected officials, not hired officials. But the judge said the courts have never been called on to distinguish between the two. The specific section of the law does not make that distinction, either, the judge said.

"However, the Arkansas appellate courts have never addressed the question of whether this constitutional provision applies only to elected offices, or whether it applies to appointed offices as well," Gray said.

"Accordingly, the Arkansas appellate courts have never interpreted Article 5, Section 9 in a way that limits its application solely to elected offices. Article 5, Section 9 does not include any language which expressly limits its application to elected offices. It merely states that it applies to 'any office of trust or profit in this state.' Language of a constitutional provision that is plain and unambiguous must be given its obvious and common meaning."

She declined a request by City Attorney Robert Bamburg, who is representing Herweg and the city defendants, to immediately stay her ruling while the city appeals the decision to the Arkansas Supreme Court. Gray said she'll consider a written request by Jacksonville to suspend the order until the high court can decide the city's appeal.

Attorney Alex Grant, representing plaintiff Tara Smith, said he'll oppose any request for delay, adding that he's ready to fight the city's appeal before the Supreme Court.

Smith, one of the 10 aldermen who make up the City Council, sued in May to challenge the legality of Herweg holding the chief's job. She's also asking the judge to force him to refund the money he has been paid since being hired about 2½ months ago.

The defendants include Jacksonville Mayor Gary Fletcher, who made the decision to hire Herweg, and City Clerk Susan Davitt, for paying his salary in her role as city treasurer.

Herweg was a seven-year officer with the Taylor, Texas, Police Department near Austin, Texas, when he crashed his car into a nearby home on Christmas Eve 2000. He left the car at the scene and told investigators the vehicle had been stolen. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of making a false statement to a police officer in exchange for a three-day jail sentence, a $2,000 fine and the permanent surrender of his Texas peace officer's license.

Herweg came to Jacksonville from Lovington, N.M., where he had risen from sergeant to deputy chief. Herweg was one of five finalists in January 2016 for the police chief job in Columbus, Miss., which has a population of about 23,000. He withdrew his application about two weeks before the City Council decided on a new chief.

Jacksonville's population as of July 2016 was an estimated 28,518, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau figures.

Metro on 06/30/2017

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