NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) -The state commission that governs police certification voted Friday to create a universal patch for off-duty law enforcement so the public can identify who is and isn’t a police officer.
The Davidson County Sheriff’s Office is launching an investigation into potential “misuse” of their employees and policy violations by a Solaren, a Mt. Juliet security company.
As part of the investigation, police learned that Carr referred to himself as a police officer in Facebook messages, even though he lost his state certification to be a police officer when he resigned from the Millersville police department.
An examination by WSMV4 Investigates of those commission cards, and who received them, reveals connections between the turmoil in Millersville and our ongoing “Thin Blurred Line” investigation.
Byrd and Solaren have been at the center of a WSMV4 Investigation, “The Thin Blurred Line,” which revealed how the company is accused of hiring people who aren’t licensed police officers but wear police identification.
According to a police incident report, the driver of RAV4 was Chris Tubbs, the same person identified in our Thin Blurred Line investigation for posting pictures of himself wearing police identification while working security, though he is not a state certified law enforcement officer.
The four investigations center around the four people we identified in our reporting as wearing police badges and vests, but not are licensed by the state to be officers.
A WSMV4 Investigation found the Millersville Police Department has ties to Solaren Risk Management, a company accused of allowing uncertified people to wear police identification.
Shawver becomes the latest person identified in a WSMV4 Investigation for not being certified as a police officer, but wearing gear that identified himself as police.
“This is a public safety issue. These folks are indistinguishable from real police officers,” said attorney David Raybin, a former district attorney who represents law enforcement in Middle Tennessee.
