Four Davidson County Sheriff’s Office employees suspended following accusations of ‘abuse of position’
An internal investigation into the employees is the latest development in WSMV4’s “Thin Blurred Line” investigation
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Four employees of the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) have received the highest level of discipline - 40-hour suspensions - because they wore police identification when they are not state-certified law enforcement.
The four employees -- Cpl. Lasean Bonds, Cpl. David Farmby, Cpl. Jack Roper and prison processor Marshall Grotewiel -- were all suspended following an internal sheriff’s department investigation.
WSMV4 Investigates reached out to all four for comment, but only Robles responded and declined to comment.
The suspensions are the latest fallout from our “Thin Blurred Line” investigation, which exposed how people, including a felon, who aren’t certified law enforcement but are wearing police identification.
At the center of our investigation is the Mt. Juliet-based company Solaren and its CEO Jack Byrd.
Following our reporting, 62 civil violations were filed by the state Department of Commerce and Insurance against Solaren and Byrd, who were also not state-certified law enforcement but wore police identification.
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As part of the state investigation that resulted in the violations, thirteen current and former DCSO employees were identified as working as off-duty security for Solaren.
Of those thirteen, nine were then investigated by the sheriff’s office on allegations of “abuse of position” for misrepresenting themselves as either police or certified law enforcement.
Four of the nine were found to have committed “abuse of position” by wearing police identification while working off duty. All four confirmed to sheriff’s department investigators that they work for Solaren.
In response to the state violations, Byrd’s attorneys are asking an administrative law judge to dismiss the case, stating that DCSO employees do have “special law enforcement powers.”
Sheriff’s department spokeswoman Karla West said no sheriff’s department employee is certified law enforcement by the state to make arrests.
According to the internal sheriff’s department investigation, sheriff’s department employees are directed not to “mislead the public” by “wearing uniforms, attire, credentials, or other insignia implying law enforcement authority while on duty.”
WSMV4 Investigates reached out to Byrd and his attorney, sharing the sheriff’s department investigation and asked for an interview or comment, but did not hear back from them by our deadline.
According to the internal sheriff’s department investigation, Robles told the investigators that, “early on in his employment with Solaren, he was told, ‘We are not security, we need to look appropriate.’”
Robles also admitted to wearing patches that read “police” or “police off duty,” but that “he had felt uneasy about the patches.”
Bonds also admitted that Solaren had him wear a vest that identified him as “police” when he first started.
Two employees, who were not found to have violated department policy, said they worked for Solaren but declined wearing police identification.
Many of the employees who were not found to have been in violation, though, stated that they did not believe Solaren was attempting to identify them as off-duty police officers or POST-certified officers.
This is a developing story. Stay with WSMV4 Investigates throughout the day for the latest details.
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