THE TEXAS POLICE STAR - CLEAT · PDF file · 2017-02-13THE TEXAS POLICE STAR ......

TEXAS POLICE STAR | January 2014 1

THE TEXAS POLICE STARA PUBLICATION OF THE COMBINED LAW ENFORCEMENT ASSOCIATIONS OF TEXAS

Proudly Serving Texas’ Finest

Volume 17, Issue 1 January 2014

INSIDE THIS EDITION

CLEAT Pays Off Texas Peace Officers MonumentJohn Sneed, Executive Director of the State Preservation Board and Kim Vickers, Executive Director of the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement attended the CLEAT convention this morning to formerly accept a check from CLEAT in the amount of $85,000 to pay off the needed res-torations to the Peace Officers Memorial Monument.

Major Legal Victory! CLEAT Wins on Appeal For San Antonio Officer

CLEAT’s New Phone App Has You Covered

CLEAT General Counsel Michael Rickman holds the ruling of the 4th Court of Appeals ordering the reinstatement of San Antonio Police Lt. Joseph Salvaggio who is represented by CLEAT. An arbitrator had ordered Salvaggio’s indefinite suspension overturned, but the City re-fused to comply and appealed to district court. The court ruled in the officer’s favor and again order reinstatement. Again the City refused. CLEAT continued to represent the officer in the Court of Appeals. And again, we have won another one on behalf of a member.

Any time police officers draw their weapons in the line of duty they not only put their lives on the line, they put their careers at risk.But CLEAT now has an innovative new tool to protect officers who are protecting the public. The exclusive CLEAT Tactical Bag puts officers who find themselves in critical situations in touch with a CLEAT lawyer almost instantly.The first-of-its-kind tactical bag is a mobile phone app developed specially for CLEAT members and its coding is trademarked. The app uses GPS technology to connect an officer with an on-call attorney after a critical incident. It’s free, easy to use -- and it’s the only mobile phone app designed exclusively for law enforcement of-ficers.“No other law enforcement association has anything like this,” said CLEAT President Todd Harrison.

President’s MessagePage 3Austin City Council Unanimously Adopts Four Year Contract With Austin Police AssociationPage 3Corpus Christi POA Gains MembersPage 3

New Generation of Innovation and LeadershipPage 4Fort Worth Police Officers Association Saves Jobs8

New Leadership Aims To Bring CLEAT Closer To You Page 24

(Continued on page 14)

By John Mortiz

2 TEXAS POLICE STAR | January 2014

THE CLEAT TACTICAL BAGTHE CLEAT TACTICAL BAG

A v a i l a b l e o n t h e

App Store

DOWNLOAD YOUR APP NOW!

• Submit A Critical Incident Form 24/7 And A CLEAT Attorney Will Contact You Right Away.

• Update Contact Information

• View Payment History And Make Payments

• Register For Upcoming Training Classes

• Call Any CLEAT Office In Texas

PHONE APP FEATURES

W E ’ V E G O T Y O U C O V E R E DW E ’ V E G O T Y O U C O V E R E D

D o w n l o a d f o r

Android

Your CLEAT engine is brand new, runs faster, more efficient and with-out any new costs to you. It’s true that since our board voted to make a change and bring in a new leader this year that we’ve seen a complete restructure that brings CLEAT closer to you.Without any fanfare, working quickly and behind the scenes CLEAT has made large and small

changes to make sure the services we provide continue to be top notch and out distance any of the pretenders who claim to be our competitors.These decisions have included creating new positions to make sure CLEAT services are spread evenly across our huge geographic ex-panse. And it is downright exciting to see the new professionals move into place and the new CLEAT taking form right in front of our eyes.We are bringing CLEAT closer to our members. Our entire direc-tion as an organization has reversed. We are focused on our mem-bers. Since our board vote on August 23, our mission has been to reinvest in the CLEAT membership infrastructure and the delivery of membership services. Some of the changes have been fast and obviously apparent while others won’t be visible to the naked eye but will be experienced during critical incidents with rapid legal response and a beefed up field services program with many more boots on the ground. More lawyers that work just for you. These aren’t just any law-yers. These are former officers, former prosecutors and attorneys

with real live experience in fighting just for law enforcement pro-fessionals. You won’t find them defending criminals one day and working for you the next.Our new iPhone and Android apps called the CLEAT Tactical Bag. These are patent and trademark protected. This extremely innova-tive technology puts our lawyers right down in the street next to you. Our overhaul of the entire CLEAT database utilizes the Cloud to protect every byte of our members information and gives you di-rect access to be able to change your personal information or pay your bill straight from your phone. Nobody has this but CLEAT.Our focus is on our members. Our delivery of the highest quality service to our members just got a little closer to the unit you’re driving or the hard work you’re doing protecting the streets or keeping the bad guys in the jailhouse. Some folks are afraid of change. Some folks call innovation cir-cling the wagons and huddling together with the same old crowd and the same old message. The new CLEAT is just getting start-ed with fast paced troop deployment, technical innovation and a mindset of building a better world for our members. Everything thing else is just a bunch of chatter from people wanting to make money off of cops.Our new Executive Director, Charley Wilkison and I have worked together since my first days on the Austin Police Association Board of Directors all the way through my years on the CLEAT Board, then as Vice President and finally as your President. Our new Ex-ecutive Director and our CLEAT Executive Board is focused, we are engaged, buckle up Texas. It’s on.

3TEXAS POLICE STAR | January 2014

By Todd HarrisonPresident

The New CLEAT Is Setting The Pace For Texas

The Austin City Council unanimously adopted a new four year contract with the Austin Police Association. Of-ficers will receive a 1.5 % pay raise in 2014,1% in 2015 and 2016 and a 2% raise in 2017. The contract was ratified by the rank and file membership by an overwhelming 79%. 985 officers voted, making it a large turnout. CLEAT congratulates the APA negotiating team as well as all the members in Austin.

Austin City Council Unanimously Adopts 4 Year Contract with Austin Police Association

Corpus Christi Police Officers Association Gains MembersCCPOA and CLEAT are happy to announce that 100% of the 71st academy class of the Corpus Christi Police Department joined the CCPOA thanks to the CCPOA Executive Board and CLEAT attorney Celeste Cory. The academy class consisted of 24 cadets all of whom are now CCPOA members. Of the 24 ca-dets, 21 joined the CCPOA PAC. Great job to all.


State Senator Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott addressed the convention during Friday’s events. Both can-didates are currently running for Governor. Sena-tor Davis received the Legislative Crime Fighter of the Year award from CLEAT for her support of law enforcement during the 83rd Legislation

Session. CLEAT had the intention of presenting General Abbott with a shotgun, but the Attorney General was unable to receive it due to a state law limiting gifts to $50. Therefore, the gun will be auctioned off and the proceeds will go to the Peace Officers’ Memorial Foundation.

The Travis County Sheriffs Hon-or Guard along with the Austin Police Department’s Flag and Bag Pipe Corp opened the Con-vention with the presentation of colors.

State Senator Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, addresses the Convention.

The Convention brought law enforcement training, special speakers and big announce-ments about CLEAT’s future.The Convention began with two full days of Mindset Boot Camp taught by Dave ‘Buck Savage’ and Betsy Smith and Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. CLEAT pro-vided this training for free to all convention attendees, who also received 16 hours of TCOLE credit.On the Friday of the Conven-tion, the day was filled with countless door prizes and doz-ens of awards given to officers for their hard work and dedica-tion.

The CLEAT Convention – New Generation of Innovation and Leadership

State Senator Robert ‘Bob’ Deuell MD, R-Greenville was the keynote speaker. Senator Deuell was the Senate author of HB 304 in 2005, the Meet and Confer bill that is now State law today.CLEAT also welcomed in new Ex-ecutive Director, Charley Wilkison. Charley is no stranger to CLEAT. He has spent the last twenty years fight-ing for law enforcement in the field and in the Capitol. CLEAT’s former Executive Director, John Burpo, retired at the end of the year.Chief Kim Vickers of the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement also attended the Convention along with John Sneed of the Texas State Preservation Board. They accepted a check for $85,000 from CLEAT to go towards the final and comple-tion of the Peace Officers’ Memorial Monument.State Representative Phil King, R-Weatherford, was a guest speaker during Saturday’s events. Rep. King is on the House Committee on Pensions and was honored with the Law Enforcement Leg-islative Hero Award at the Convention for all his hard work and support during the 83rd Legislative Session.

A huge highlight of the Convention was the presentation of the regional Officer of the Year awards. Friends, family and col-leagues of officers from across Texas attended Saturday’s presen-tations as heroic and heartfelt stories were told of the officers.


San Antonio Officer Jolanda Sanchez is honored with the 2013 Officer of the Year award for Region 3A, for saving the life of Officer Aaron Terrazas. The Convention concluded with a memorial and remembrance of fallen officers who have given the ultimate sacri-fice. The 2014 CLEAT Convention will be held in San Antonio on November 4th – 9th.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott spoke on Friday afternoon of the Convention.


Longview Police Officers Association Receives Grass-roots Political Action Award

Cleburne Chief Robert Severance Rappels Down Building for Cleburne Police Officers Association Efforts

CLEAT’s Dwight Tiller re-cently presented the Grassroots Political Action Award to the Longview Police Officers As-sociation for lobbying city management and elected of-ficials, testifying at the state capitol, all in support of offi-

cers injured in the line of duty.From left: Longview POA board members; Debra Stiles, Jacky Hiles, CLEAT’s Dwight Tiller, LPOA President Jimmie Redmon, James Mathis and Chris Clayton.

The Cleburne Police Of-ficers Association was recently presented with a challenge from their police chief, Robert Severance. He claimed that if they raised a certain amount of money for the Texas Spe-cial Olympics, that he would rappel down a 15 foot story building. They raised the $2,000 for Texas Special Olympics and he kept his end of the challenge by rappelling down the building.

CLEAT Regional Directors Assist Wichita Falls Police

Officers AssociationCLEAT’s David Kilcrease presents the Wichita Falls Police Of-ficers Association Vice President Buddy Alexander and Treasurer Danette Sheehan a check from CLEAT Regional Directors Aaron Smith and Bobby Hardin to promote their membership fish fry.

The Chambers County Sheriff’s As-sociation and Chambers County has signed a 2 year Collective Bargaining Agreement. The contract calls for substantial pay raises for both Detention Officers and Law Enforcement Officers.On the Law Enforcement side the raises range from 16% up to 26%. The Association was assisted by CLEAT President Todd Harrison in the negotiations. President Harrison was extremely thankful for the hard work Chambers County Sheriff’s Association President Brad Moon and his team put into the contract.“Both sides realized that Chambers county was behind in compen

sation and there was compromise on both sides,” said Harrison, an Austin Police Sergeant. The contract is the first step in what is going to be an ongoing process to close the gap on salaries with other area Departments.“Even though we just signed the contract we are already gearing up for the next contract in two years,” stated Harrison.


CLEAT Welcomes New Arlington Police Association

Board Members

Deputy Sheriffs gain 16-26% pay increases in Chambers County

El Paso Municipal Police Officers Association Bargains For Officers

Arlington Detective Receives Multidisciplinary Award

All the ballots have been counted and there’s a brand new Arlington Police As-sociation Board. Jesse Min-ton Vice President, Brendan Banks Vice President, and Becki Brandenburg President.

The collective bargaining negotiations team from the El Paso Municipal Police Officers Association meet with CLEAT’s lead negotiator Craig Deats to discuss bargaining details for a contract.

Children’s AdvocacyCenters of Texas award-ed Arlington Detective Garth Savage the Multi-disciplinary Team Mem-ber Award at the Partners In Courage Luncheon in Austin, Texas Detective Savage has worked on the

Child Sexual Predator Task Force for the past two years. He is pictured with the APA President Becki Brandenburg and colleagues of the Arling-ton Police Department.

CLEAT President Todd Harrison stands with leaders and members of the Chambers County Sheriffs Association

C L E AT F i e l d R e p r e -sentative P e r r y H y d e n

has successfully negotiated three lucrative contracts de-spite assertions from city/county officials that they have no money. The three contracts were with the Harlingen Police Department, Kingsville Police Department and the Kleberg County Sheriff’s Office. High-lights of the collective bargain-ing agreements:Harlingen – 1 year agreement with a 3% across the board pay increase.Kingsville – 3 year agreement with three additional pay steps (7 steps overall), an approxi-mate 5.5% pay increase over the life of the agreement. Some steps were combined giving some of the rank and file of-ficers up to a 12% increase. In addition, in year 2 of the agree-ment, all officers will have their longevity increased from $5.00 per month per year of service to $6.50 per month per year of service. In year three of the agreement longevity will increase to $7.00 per month per year of service.Kleberg County – This was a mid-contract pay re-opener. The county started out stating

they were facing a one million dollar deficit. But in the end we reached a very lucrative agree-ment. All jail staff will receive a 7.38% across the board pay increase. Law Enforcement deputies had steps added. De-pending on where he/she falls in their tenure, their increase will be either 9.13%, 15.08%, 21.03% or 26.98%. In addition, all bargaining unit members re-ceived a bump in their already lucrative longevity pay rate. The amount of the jump is ten-ure based. Kleberg also works a lot of over time. In their first year of their contract we were able to get the County to move from only paying compensa-tory time to officers having a choice of receiving compensa-tory time or money after work-ing overtime. This year we got the county to approve non-productive time in overtime computation. What this means is that if an officer takes a va-cation day in the middle of his/her workweek and then works grant-funded time in excess of their workweek, officers will still receive the time and a half rate as the vacation time will count for time worked. One other major benefit of this agreement concerns working on county holidays – officers working on a county holiday receive double time and a half.


Amarillo Police Officers Association Gains New MembersThese fine officers are the 11 newest CLEAT members from the Amarillo Po-lice Officers Association. This academy graduated in December 2013. CLEAT welcomes them to APOA!

CLEAT Continues to Dominate in South Texas Contract Negotiations

CLEAT Benefit Plan Holds Enrollment in El PasoCLEAT’s Mayra Marquez as-sists an officer with the El Paso County Sheriffs Office in en-rolling in the CLEAT Benefit Plan for dental and vision ben-

efits. CLEAT members inter-ested in obtaining dental and vi-sion benefits should visit http://www.cleat.org/benefit-plans/summary-plan-description/


Del Rio Police Officers Association Elects New Executive Board

The Del Rio Police Officers Association held its Executive Board Oath of Office. Honorary Delegates attending were Mayor Rob-ert “Bobby” Fernandez, City Manger Lupita RobertEads, Chief of Police James Von Debrow III, Council Rowland Garza, Coun-cil Al Arreola, Council Woman Elizabeth Elizalde, Mark Guerra-

President, Valentin Martinez, Jake Garza-Secretary/treasure, Jesse Garcia Jr.-Sgt @Arms, Pete-Gina Garcia-Board Member, Paul Hurley-Board Member, Kerr Wardlaw-Board Member, Donnie Fernandez.

Officers Assist in Lamar County

Fuzz FestivalThe 9th annual Lamar County Fuzz Festival was another success with many area law enforcement officers attend-ing the golf tournament and dinner. Cooking steaks in the evening are CLEAT member and event organizers Jimmy Hodges, Eric Gibbs along with law enforcement supporter and annual volunteer Colman Morris.

Waxahachie Police Officer Josh Williams was killed in the line of duty when he was struck by a drunk driver while responding to a disturbance. He was survived by a wife and six (6) children. The Williams family is a prime example of why CLEAT worked so hard to pro-vide health insurance to the families of officers killed in the line of duty. CLEAT drafted and lobbied for the passage of three different bills to make this happen.And though Officer Williams was not a member, CLEAT is who was contacted when the family fell through the cracks of bureaucracy. Because of prob-lems in the past with survivors not being told they could keep their insurance, CLEAT changed the law and required employers to notify survivors by certified mail of their rights under Chapter 615, Texas Govern-ment Code. In the case of Josh Williams, that didn’t happen. The family didn’t know they were eligible for continued coverage under the City’s health plan be-cause they weren’t told. When they did learn of this benefit, the deadline had passed for them to sign up. A Victim Services/Employee Assistance officer with the Texas DPS contacted CLEAT’s Chris Jones about this case. Jones has handled a number of cases where cities or counties failed or refused to cover survivors. Fight-ing these battles is not new to CLEAT.On October 24, 2013, Jones contacted the Human Re-sources Director for the City of Waxahachie. He sent a comprehensive e-mail explaining the law, the history of the changes made by the legislature, and requested cov-erage for the family since the City had failed to provide the notice required by the statute. The City in turn for-warded the request to the Texas Municipal League (TML) Risk

Pool. And in November, the family was notified that they would be eligible to rejoin the City’s health plan. A small victory for a family that has paid the ultimate sacrifice.


The Peace Officers’ Memorial Foundation Hosts Annual BBQ Cook Off

California Casualty Donates $5,000 To The Peace Officers’ Memorial Foundation

CLEAT Comes To The Rescue Again On Survivor Health Care

CLEAT President Todd Harrison (left) and Regional Director Greg Shipley (right) pictured with Joseph Clarence and his BBQ Cook Off team from Mama & Papa Joe’s BBQ in Converse, Tex-as. The team was the Grand Champion Winner at the POMF BBQ

Cook Off in San Antonio. To win the overall award, the team placed 2nd in the Pork Rib category and 1st in both the Brisket & Chicken categories.

Roxanne Dean with Cali-fornia Casualty, a CLEAT preferred provider, is pic-tured with CLEAT Presi-dent Todd Harrison pre-senting a check for $5,000 to the Peace Officers Me-morial Foundation at the annual convention.

Officer Josh Williams, Waxahachie Police Department On July 28, 2012

People will always remember where they were on November 22, 1963. November 22, 2013, was the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy by Lee Harvey Os-wald in Dallas Texas. Almost every American knows those names and all the stories, con-spiracies and media attention that are affiliated with that tragic day. Not everyone remembers Dallas Police Officer, J.D. Tip-pit, who was shot and killed by Lee Harvey Oswald while flee-ing the book depository.CLEAT has worked very hard over the years to ensure that Officers are not forgotten. We would like to introduce another element to this historical and tragic day. Detective Brad Tip-pit has worked for the Missouri City Police Department since June 1994. Brad is the nephew of slain Dallas Officer J.D. Tippit. Brad Tippit has lived with the loss and knowl-edge of November 22, 1963 for all his life.

Brad defined the event as the lynch pin in his determination to start his career in Law Enforcement and has been a driving force in his daily work as well as giving him a need to learn as much as possible regarding the event. Brad says he began making in-quiries to family members at a very young age. Brad has continued to research and study all available material relating to J.D. Tippit’s death.

There were two occasions in J.D. Tippit’s career where he could have been killed ear-lier. During one instance he was stabbed in the stomach and knee with an ice pick. The other occasion a man wanted by the FBI pulled out a pistol and pointing it at his head pulled the trigger, but fortunately the gun was on safe and did not discharge.Brad has been assisted with research from many different officers to help him gather information over the years. Brad believes Dallas Police did a great job on the investigation, and says how faithful Dallas Police Officers have remained in in-volving family in events and treating them like family.Being a homicide Detective with Missouri City Police Department has given him a better understanding and better tools to use during his research of the killing of his uncle. Brad admits that he and the rest of his surviving family can become frustrated with all the conspiracy theories reported surrounding the events of that day.

However, he also realizes that it helps fuel Americans to remember his Uncle. Brad’s said that it has been an honor to be able to continue to carry the torch and help people remember J.D. Tippit. Brad Tippit’s family worked to erect a Texas Historical Marker in Clarksville,Texas and to educate

writers, televi-sion and news reporters that are still pulling at all available threads to fully under-stand the events of the day J.D. Tippit was mur-dered.

CLEAT’s Janet Cole contributed to this ar-ticle.


Fallen Police Hero in Kennedy Assassination Remembered

CLEAT’s Tom Barbee and Detective Brad Tippit

“Our family would like for the country to remem-ber Officer J.D. Tippit, my uncle, who fell in the line of duty.”

By Tom Barbee, Field Services Coordinator


Chairman Pickett Honored with Law Enforcement Leadership Award

Representative Todd Hunter Honored with Best of the House Award

TMRS Votes to Update Mortality Tables

CLEAT’s Charley Wilkison presents State Representa-tive Joe Pickett, D-El Paso, with the Law Enforcement Leadership Award. Representative Pickett is Chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety.

CLEAT’s Charley Wilkison presents State Representa-tive Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, with the Best of the House Award for his continued support of law enforce-ment during the 83rd Legislative Session. Rep. Hunter is Chair of the House Calendars Committee.

On aver-age, since 1980, life e x p e c -tancy has increased, a p p r o x i -

mately 2 years for females (to age 85) and 3 years for males (to age 83). What you may not know is that longevity directly impacts the calculation of pension benefits. Ev-ery pension system has something called “mortality tables” that make assumptions used to calculate ben-efits.If you are a city employee in TMRS, when you retire, TMRS determines your monthly benefit by dividing your accumulated de-posits and city match (“reserves”) by an annuity purchase rate (APR) factor. Mortality, or life expectancy assumptions in the mortality tables, directly affects the APRs. Because these reserves are being spread over a longer period of time, the month-ly benefit will be lower.Current TMRS mortality as-sumptions for calculating benefit amounts have not been changed since the early 1980’s and do not take into consideration increasing life expectancy. With no changes, employer contribution rates would increase on average by 10%. And costs would continue to rise over time. This would have forced many cities to reevaluate benefit options.With that in mind, TMRS contract-ed to have a mortality study con-ducted and propose updated tables based on the findings of the study. This was done, and at the October TMRS board meeting, the board voted to adopt the new tables.The new mortality tables will be used to calculate annuity purchase rates starting in January of 2015. These changes will not affect cur-rent retirees or those who retire prior to January of 2015. The new mortality assumptions are going to be phased in over 13 years in order

to have as minimal impact as possi-ble to employers and those employ-ees who are near retirement age.For example the current annuity factor for a retiring 60 year old is 12.1. Starting in 2015, this will in-crease one tenth of a point to 12.2 and will continue to rise one tenth of a point to 13.8 in 2027. Based on these factor changes, an employee’s joint survivor annuity will change by about 0. 5% less per year dur-ing the phase-in period. How does this directly affect a future retiree’s benefit?Here is an example for a 50 year old who retires has 20 years of service, $45,000 salary, 7% city contribu-tion rate with a 2 to 1 match. If the employee works three more years past the start of the phase-in period and retires in 2017 with a joint sur-vivor annuity, the employee would receive $1,563/month using the new rates as compared to $1,585/month under the current rates, a difference of $22 per month. If the employee worked until the end of the phase-in period in 2027, their joint survivor annuity under the current rates would be $3,853/month. Under the new rates and with the 13 year phase in, the annu-ity in 2027 would be $3625/month, or $228 less.So the new mortality assumptions will have an impact by lowering the expected amount of future retirees monthly annuity payments. It will mean that an employee may have to work longer under the new rates to get the same benefit they would get today under the current rates.TMRS is expected to come up with a new annuity calculator to be rolled out January 1, 2014, that will allow employees retiring in the fu-ture to get a better estimate of what their annuity would be based on the new mortality assumptions.CLEAT will stay on top of this is-sue and will keep you posted when additional information becomes available.

By Chris Jones


TMRS Discusses New GASB Rule, Makes Accounting Changes

La Marque Police Officers Association Fights Back in Bargaining

The Texas Mu-nicipal Retirement System (TMRS) has been discussing the implementation

of GASB rules and how they will affect TMRS.The Governmental Accounting Standards Board, known as GASB, adopted new pension accounting and financial report-ing rules in June of 2012. These rules are slated to take full effect in 2014. The new GASB rules change the accounting meth-ods used by retirement plans and plan sponsors (cities & counties) and the meth-ods used by these entities to report assets and liabilities.One major change will be that unfunded liabilities will have to be reported on the balance sheet or annual financial statement of plan sponsors (cities and counties) us-ing an asset-valuation method called “fair market value”. This basically requires pension funds and fund sponsors to report the “current” value of the assets and liabil-ities of the fund, which is now called the “net pension liability”. With fluctuating markets and investments, this can have a shocking effect on what is reported during any given fiscal year. Under current rules, investment gains and losses may be spread out over long periods of time. This meth-

od is called “smoothing” and takes into account the volatility of investments and the markets. When the public and media review these financial statements, the new changes may cause the reported unfunded liabilities of pension benefits to soar and look far worse than has traditionally been the case.Another GASB accounting rule change will require pension funds to use a cost method called “entry age normal” or EAN when reporting the liabilities associated with future pension benefits. Until now, TMRS has used a cost method called “projected unit credit” or PUC to calcu-late funding and to report liabilities. When used as a funding method, PUC, allowed employers to put less money into the re-tirement fund early in the employees ca-reer and then increase or pay more as the employee got closer to retirement age. Under the EAN cost method, employers will have to pay approximately the same amount to the system throughout the em-ployee’s career.GASB does not require TMRS to change to the EAN cost method to fund benefits, but if they don’t benefits will be funded under a different cost method than they will be reported under. Two drastically different sets of numbers could create con-fusion and be used in a negative way by

pension critics. In order to avoid having to calculate funding and liabilities using two different accounting methods, TMRS voted to change to EAN for both funding and reporting.EAN is a more stable method of fund-ing, but it will cost some employers more initially so TMRS decided to phase this change in for any city that sees an increase in contribution amount greater than 0.5%. Those cities will be allowed to phase-in the higher rate 0.5% per year until they are paying the full rate.The total effect that GASB will have on pension funds, including TMRS, has yet to be determined. TMRS admits that there is still a lot of work to do to determine how these rules will be interpreted and imple-mented by those who prepare annual fi-nancial statements, actuaries, and auditors all of who are involved in this process.We believe TMRS is well funded and will pass any new test under GASB in regards to future funding or accounting require-ments. What can be expected is that those attacking pensions will continue to distort the facts and use some of the reports re-quired by the new GASB rules as ammu-nition to further attack your benefits.CLEAT has and will continue to monitor the new rules and changes and will send out updates as they become available.

La Marque Police Officers Association members met in special session with CLEAT. Field Representative Director Dwight Tiller, Field Rep Tom Barbee, Staff Attorney Bob Thomas, Public Af-fairs Coordinator Melinda Griffith and Charley Wilkison attended the planning session regarding the city’s failure to bar-gain in good faith with the union.

By Melinda Griffith


CLEAT Is The Only Law Enforcement Organization That Attends Every State Pension Review Board HearingAttending the State Pension Re-view Board meeting in Austin. Again CLEAT is the only state-wide law enforcement group in attendance. The PRB is the statewatchdog for public employee retirement systems. They discussed the implementation of some of the key provisions passed in HB 13, including an interim study on the financial health of public retirement systems.

Port Arthur Officer Reinstated Thanks to CLEAT LegalPictured with CLEAT Attorney Bob Thomas is Sgt. Shawn Perron, an 18 ½ year veteran of the Port Arthur Police Department. He was represented by Bob Thomas at an arbitration hearing after he was terminated. Sgt. Perron was reinstated to the dept. with back pay. He accepted responsibility for 4 policy violations and the arbitrator exonerated him of the fifth policy violation and reduced the termina-tion to a 15 day suspension.

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“This immediately provides legal representation for officers who have had to use force during a critical incident.”You can get the trademarked CLEAT Tactical Bag by going to the app store and downloading it to your smart phone. Just cre-ate a unique user name and password to log in.In the event of a critical incident, open the critical incident fea-ture. The app automatically enters the officer’s name, email ad-dress, phone number and present location. Then, type in the in-formation regarding the incident. A CLEAT lawyer will contact you by text or by phone as soon as possible.Meanwhile, the officer receives a call with recorded Garrity in-structions.“This innovative tool takes CLEAT attorneys right down to the street – where ever the incident occurs,” said CLEAT Executive Director Charley Wilkison.In addition, the tactical bag also has a member profile, a phone book to connect you with any CLEAT office and a way to sign up for training events.So the next time you’re called to action, the CLEAT Tactical Bag has you covered.


Huge Turnout for CLEAT Sponsored Street Survival Seminar in AmarilloOfficers in North Texas attended the new and improved Street Survival seminar in Amarillo, Texas at no cost thanks to CLEAT. Officers were taught by Calibre Press Instructor Keith Wenzel. The Cali-bre Press Street Survival Seminar is pre-sented with all new material, focusing on “Keeping Officers Safe”. Under the direc-tion of Jim Glennon and the Lifeline team, Street Survival instructors present a highly energetic and impactful experience meant to develop smarter, safer, and more suc-cessful law enforcement professionals.

Training CalendarADVANCED CRIMINAL PATROL TACTICS BY LIFELINE TRAININGTuesday, January 21, 2014 / 8am – 4pm (8-hours)

TUITION: FREEThough this class is sponsored by CLEAT, any officer may attend, regardless of membership.COURSE DESCRIPTION:Instructed by Chief Edward Delmore, this fast paced eight-hour course is intended for patrol officers and supervisors who want to become more effective in detecting and arresting criminals oper-ating motor vehicles. Including drug traffickers, fugitives, felons, and gang members; the training focuses on objective criteria for criminal interdiction and not on so-called “profiling” techniques.LOCATION:East Texas Police AcademyWoodruff Adult Education Center220 N HendersonKilgore, Texas 75662TCOLE CREDIT:Those attending will receive 8-hour of training credit from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE)To register, visit www.CLEAT.org/Training-Schedule

WINNING MIND FOR WOMENThursday, January 23, 2014 / 8am – 4pm (8-hours)

TUITION: FREEThough this class is sponsored by CLEAT, any officer may attend, regardless of membership.COURSE DESCRIPTION:This training is like no other in that it encourages women, and those who train and supervise them, to look beyond the anecdot-al, “that’s-the-way-we’ve-always-done-it” world of learning and utilize science, physiology and proven methods and information

that will help anyone in law enforcement improve their career and their survival. Veteran instructor Sgt. Betsy Smith (ret.) guide stu-dents through 8 hours of intensive, interactive training that will provide attendees with updates and information they can employ to improve and enhance both their professional and personal lives. The multi-media format keeps students engaged and entertained while providing personnel with a realistic view of gender differ-ences and how these can be harnessed in both men and women to improve performance, morale, communication, relationships, and especially officer safety.LOCATION:El Paso Municipal Police Association Hall3601 RutherglenEl Paso, Texas(near Montana and McRae) in east El Paso.Hall: (915) 591-8669EMPOA: (915) 544-4792TCOLE CREDIT:Those attending will receive 8-hour of training credit from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE)To register, visit www.CLEAT.org/Training-Schedule

SIGN UP NOW FOR ONLINE TRAINING WITH POLICEONE ACADEMY FOR FREE

Did you know that the new State and Federal Law Update Course (#3183) and Human Trafficking (#3270) both required by the Tex-as Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) can now be taken online through PoliceOne Academy. And subscriptions to Poli-ceOne Academy are free to CLEAT members. For more informa-tion, or to sign up, visit the Training Tab of the CLEAT website.

TEXAS POLICE STAR | January 201416

CLEAT presented a Calibre Press Street Survival Training seminar in Longview with a large number of officers in attendance. Officers from as far away as San Antonio took part in the one day class.

CLEAT members finish 2-week joint training exercise, Talisman Saber, at Fort Lewis, WA. Members are soldiers of the 36th In-fantry Division, Texas Army National Guard. Austin and Arling-ton PD officers, CLEAT Attorney LTC Craig Driskell.

The Texas Narcotic Officers Association held a highly success-ful annual conference in Dallas with over 500 officers in at-tendance. CLEAT was proud to be the official TCOLE training provider for TNOA.

CLEAT Participates in School Based Law Enforcement Conference

CLEATMembers Finish 2 Week Joint Training Exercise

TNOA Holds Successful Conference

CLEAT Hosts Street Survival Seminar ForLongviewOfficers

CLEAT Staff Bargin In The Dark

CLEAT’s Janet Cole ran a booth at the Texas School Based Law Enforcement Conference in Corpus Christi and visited with officers about CLEAT. The Texas School-Based Law Enforcement (TxSBLE) Confer-ence serves as a venue for school-based law enforcement officers, school personnel, and other educational stakeholders to expand their knowledge and skills toward their mutual goal of “preparing today for a safer tomorrow”.

CLEAT’s Janet Cole is pictured with CLEAT Vice President Matt Novosad and officers with La Porte Police Department

While bargaining for the Kingsville Law Enforcement Associa-tion, a storm blew in and knocked out the power at City Hall. Despite the lighting disadvantages, CLEAT Attorney Celeste Cory and CLEAT Field Services Representa-tivePerry Hyden stuck it out and finished their revisions to the city’s proposal while working in the dark.


Officer Joseph Michalski from the Kingsville Police Depart-ment recently had his 4 day suspension overturned thanks to CLEAT Legal Attorney, Celeste Robertson. The case began when Of-ficer Michalski complained to the City Manager regarding a hostile work environment caused by a supervisor and the Chief. During that investiga-tion, which was conducted by the PD, an internal investiga-tion was also opened alleging that Officer Michalski withheld information regarding a distur-

bance call. The investigator as-signed to the case was the same supervisor Michalski had previ-ously complained about to the City Manager. Officer Michalski was issued a four day suspension as a result, and he immediately contacted CLEAT. CLEAT was able to show that the suspension given to Michal-ski was unjustified. The arbitra-tor ruled in favor of CLEAT and set aside the suspension.

CLEAT Attorney Celeste Cory and Officer Joseph Michalski

Italy’s Chief of Police Diron Hill had been a longtime Sergeant and CLEAT member before the city hired him a couple of years ago. Chief Hill’s continued mem-bership paid off when he was illegally ter-minated by a newly elected and vindictive Mayor during a community event that was sponsored by the Police Department and coordinated by Chief Hill. Chief Hill immediately called CLEAT Attorney Vincent Wisely for assistance. CLEAT immediately stepped in and learned that the Mayor had included mat-ters related to Chief Hill’s employment as an agenda item to be discussed in execu-tive session at the City Council meeting. CLEAT instructed Chief Hill to spend the little time that was available before the council meeting to rally public support and attendance, while CLEAT worked to draft a preemptive letter and have it placed in the hands of the Mayor and each mem-ber of the City Council prior to the meet-ing. The preemptive letter put the Mayor and any proponent of the Mayor’s action on notice of serious due process concerns and multiple state law violations should the city council affirm the Mayor’s action. The letter also asserted Chief Hill’s right to have any discussion that related to any alleged complaints or to the proposed ter-mination to be held in the public’s hearing. A record number of approximately 60-80 attendees gathered in the council room, which was only large enough to accom-

modate half of the attendees. The Mayor announced that due to the lack of space, the council meeting would relocate to the City’s Civic Center so that every person would have a place to observe and partici-pate in the proceedings. During public comments, approxi-mately 10-12 influential residents of the City spoke on behalf of Chief Hill. The community expressed their gratitude to Chief Hill and chastised the Mayor for his shameful behavior. Many of the public

comments resulted in standing ovations. The council then quickly made a mo-tion and unanimously approved to rein-state the Chief with no break in service. Immediately after the meeting, the Chief received back all of his equipment that he was ordered by the Mayor to relinquish just hours before.

Chief Hill and CLEAT Attorney Vincent Wisely

CLEAT Stops Small Town Political Firing In Italy!

CLEAT Legal Wins Suspension Case In Kingsville


Dave “Buck Savage” Smith and CLEAT’s Chris Jones with a large group of Fort Worth PD members at the “Winning Mind” Seminar CLEAT along with Dave Smith & Associ-ates recently partnered with the Texas Nar-cotic Officers Association to hold the ‘Winning Mind’ training seminar at TNOA’s 44th Annual Conference in Dallas. Over 100 officers from across Texas registered for the event which of-fered TCOLE credit for attending.

The City of Fort Worth threatened to lay off 150 police officers. In re-sponse to this, CLEAT and the Fort Worth Police Officers Association hired a pollster to conduct a city wide survey on public opinion. The results proved that the public opposed any layoffs to the police department. The Fort Worth Police Officers Association immediately called a press conference and announced the results of the poll. The city backed off and no layoffs occurred.

Winning Mind Training Seminar Sees Huge Turnout

Fort Worth Police Officers Association Wins Layoff Fight

THE TEXAS POLICE STAR

CLEAT EXECUTIVE BOARD PRESIDENT Todd Harrison

VICE PRESIDENTS Ervey Banda, Adrian Pina, Matthew Novosad

DIRECTORS Dean Gilliam, Fort Worth; Bobby Hardin, Tarrant County; Mark Guerra, Del Rio; Pete Elizalde, San Antonio; Greg Shipley, Cor-pus Christi; Juan Contreras, Bexar County; Ron Martin, El Paso; Marvin Ryals, El Paso County; Aaron Smith, Midland; Forrest Gandy,

La Marque; Mike Mills, Beaumont; Dawn Hanson, Austin; James Hodge, Travis County; Brady Sipes, Mesquite

The Texas Police Star is published periodically by the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas Inc. (CLEAT), a professional non-profit as-sociation comprised of Texas peace officers, corrections officers and public safety personnel. The Texas Police Star is distributed to all members of the association, as well as government officials and business throughout the state. Subscriptions are available only to members of CLEAT as part of paid membership dues and to donors of $250 or more to the Peace Officers’ Memorial foundation, Inc. The office publication is located at CLEAT, Texas Police Star, 400 W. 14th Street, Suite 200, Austin, TX 78701. The publication of advertising, commercial or political, does not represent an endorse-ment of products or services by CLEAT. CLEAT does on assume responsibility for statements of fact or opinion made by contributors. The entire

contents of The Texas Police Star are copyrighted (c) 2007-2013 by CLEAT, Inc. and may not be reproduced in any manner, either whole or in part, without written permission. All rights are reserved.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to CLEAT, Texas Police Star, 400 W. 14th Street, Suite 200, Austin, TX 78701 Printed in the U.S.A.


Those who have met and worked with CLEAT’s Nadia Stewart know she won’t back down from what is right. She will stand up for officers in truth, justice and honor. Nadia’s limits were put to the test on one of her most recent cases involving a critical incident. Austin Police Detective Charles Kleinert was involved in a deadly shooting while investigating a bank robbery. Directly after the shooting, Detective Kleinert contacted CLEAT At-torney Nadia Stewart to represent him during the formal investigation that was soon to follow. In the days following the incident, a reporter from the Austin American Statesman reached out to Nadia asking questions while also citing details of the investi-gation that were highly sensitive and confidential. The reporter provided facts from the case as well as discus-sions of the shooting by Detective Kleinert that were only disclosed to the Internal Affairs divsion at the Aus-tin Police Department. During the call, Nadia realized that an illegal leak into a highly sensitive case had oc-curred. Immediately, Nadia got on the phone with the Austin Police Monitor Margo Frasier informing her of the leak. She then filed a complaint against the Austin Police De-partment. The Austin Police Association stood tall with Nadia Stewart and scheduled a press conference at the associa-tion hall demanding that an investigation be conducted on the source of the leak. Austin Police Association President, Wayne Vincent, stood at a podium and called

on Chief Acevedo to see justice be done. Shortly after the press conference, Austin Police Chief, Art Acevedo, came out in the media downplaying the leak. Later, he suggested in private conversations to CLEAT Attorney Nadia Stewart that he was the possible leak since her husband was an officer with the Austin Police Department. He later made a public apology for his comments.

CLEAT Attorney Nadia Stewart on air with an Austin TV station

The Austin Police Association holds a press conference in response to the internal affairs investigation leak at the Austin Police Department.

CLEAT Attorney Nadia Stewart Stands Up and Fights Back


The El Paso County Sheriff fired Detention Corporal Jose Figueroa over a dispute concerning activity sheets in the jail. After a one-day arbitration, CLEAT lawyer Jim Jopling was able to obtain an order that Corporal Figueroa return to work with his rank. Although Corporal Figueroa will have to serve a suspension, he’ll be back at work in the near future, with his stripes.

Over 4 years ago, CLEAT lawyer Jim Jopling fought for and won a Civil Service ruling to get El Paso Depu-ty Constable Alfonso Frias his job back. But instead of respecting the Civil Ser-vice Commission’s author-ity, Constable Luis Aguilar thumbed his nose at the Commission. He refused to reinstate Frias. He said that Frias should have taken a job that the County of El Paso offered him. That job was a civilian position with the Public Defender’s office – a position that would have re-quired Deputy Frias to surrender his TCLEOSE license and devote himself to helping DEFEND CAPITAL MURDER CASES. Needless to say, Deputy Frias, a veteran crime fighter, declined. Four years later, after an appeal that went to the Texas Supreme

Court, the case finally went to trial. CLEAT lawyer Jim Jopling obtained a jury verdict in favor of Frias and the Judge ordered his reinstatement. It remains to be seen whether Constable Aguilar will thumb his nose at the judge the same way he did at the Civil Service Commission. If he does, CLEAT will be there, continuing to fight for Deputy Frias to the end.

El Paso Deputy Constable Alfonso Frias and CLEAT Attorney Jim Jopling

CLEAT attorney Celeste Cory represented Patrick Gonzales, a former deputy city marshal in Cor-pus Christi, arguing that he was improperly terminated. The com-mission agreed and reinstated Gon-zales with back pay; lowering the punishment to a 60 day suspension. Gonzales had worked as a deputy city marshal and acting lead mar-shall for over 13 years. His dedica-tion to the department is evident, however, a new Director has been appointed over municipal court and since her appointment many people

have been fired and/or resigned.Deputy Marshal Patrick Go-nazles and CLEAT Attorney Celeste Cory

El Paso Deputy Constable Ordered Back To Work After Legal Battle That Went To The Supreme Court

El Paso Corporal Back to Work With His Stripes

CLEAT Attorney Celeste Cory Does It Again; Longtime Marshal Reinstated With Back Pay


Governor Perry stands with Officer John Bell of the Fort Worth Police Department and his family. Officer Bell was seriously injured in the line of duty.

April Key, surviving spouse of fallen Grayson County Sheriff Deputy Chad Key and CLEAT’s Janet Cole.

Governor Rick Perry stands with Austin Police Officer Kenneth Casaday and a family member. Officer Casaday was seriously injured in the line of duty.

2013 Star of Texas Awards


Region 1A

Region 3C

Region 4B Region 5

Region 8A

Region 3A

Region 4A

Region 2

Region 3A

Region 8B

Region 3B

CLEAT’s 14 Regional Officers Of The Year

OFFICERS OF THE YEAR

Lt. Enedina MartinezRegion 2

Officer Jonathan MolinaRegion 4AOfficer Angel GarciaRegion 4AJose A MascorroRegion 4B

Karen BrutonRegion 9

Officer Jolanda SanchezRegion 3ALt. James GrayRegion 3BSgt. Lisa CastellanoRegion 3C

Thomas VillarrealRegion 8ARichard LozanoRegion 8B

Steve FloresRegion 7

Steven BergenRegion 5

Jose J ReyesRegion 1APatrick FelanRegion 1B

Region 4A officers, in red, were killed in the line of duty


Region 5

CLEAT’s Executive Board condemns President Obama’s nomi-nation of Debo Adegbile to lead the civil rights division of the U.S. Justice Department because of his defense of one of the nation’s most notorious cop killers. In a unanimous vote on Jan. 10, CLEAT’s governing board called the nomination “an insult to all law enforcement personnel, their families and the surviving spouses and children of all those who have fallen in the line of duty everywhere.” The resolution is being forward to the White House and to all 100 U.S. Senators. The Senate is now considering whether to approve Adegbile’s nomination. Adegbile led the effort to lift the death sentence for Wesley Cook, also known as Mumia Abu-Jamal, who shot and killed Philadel-phia Police Officer Daniel Faulkner during a traffic stop in 1981. Faulkner was shot four times at close range and was sentenced to die in 1982. Faulkner was an Army veteran and had been a Philadelphia po-lice officer for five years. He was married two years before he was murdered and his widow is outspoken that the killer should be ex-ecuted. The NAACP Legal Defense Fund, headed by Adegbile, argued in the appeals process that the death sentence was not warranted. A federal appeals court tossed out the death sentence. Numerous other law enforcement organizations are allied with the CLEAT executive board in condemning the nomination. The National Organization of Police Officers sent President Obama a letter urging him to withdraw Adegbile’s name from consideration. CLEAT is the only statewide group that is a member of NAPO and CLEAT President Todd Harrison is a NAPO vice president. “Mr. Adegbile worked tirelessly to free this unrepentant cop-killer,” NAPO said in its letter. “The nominee’s efforts led to the overturning of the just sentence Abu-Jamal received for murdering a valuable member of the law enforcement community. “NAPO firmly believes Mr. Adegbile’s history makes him an in-appropriate choice to lead DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, and we ve-

hemently oppose this nomination. We urge you to reconsider the nomination, as Mr. Adegbile has not shown respect for members of law enforcement who put their lives on the line everyday to keep our nation safe.”

Here is the full text of the CLEAT Executive Board’s resolution: Whereas, Debo Adegbile, who has made a name for himself de-fending one of the most notorious and unrepentant cop killers in the nation, Wesley Cook, aka “Mumia Abu-Jamal,” the convicted murderer of Philadelphia Police Officer Daniel Faulkner. Whereas, the President of the United States of America, Barack Obama has officially nominated Debo Adegbile to be the next As-sistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division at the U.S. Department of Justice. Whereas, this nomination is an insult to all law enforcement per-sonnel, their families and the surviving spouses and children of all those who have fallen in the line of duty everywhere. Whereas, The Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, or CLEAT, is the largest law enforcement advocacy organization in Texas. Whereas, CLEAT is the only statewide law enforcement organi-zation not connected to the Obama administration through pass through federal grants and other government handouts, And whereas CLEAT is not beholden to any elected official, poli-tician or government program. Be it therefore Resolved that the Executive Board, the official governing body of CLEAT, representing the line law enforcement officers of Texas has voted in open session to condemn this nomi-nation to the United States Senate. Be it further Resolved that this Resolution be presented to the members of the U.S. Senate, Texas’ U.S. Senators and the President of the United States

CLEAT Condemns Nomination of Cop Killer’s Defender

All members of the Executive Board vote in favor of the resolution.

400 W. 14th Street, Suite 200Austin, TX 78701

Change Service Requested

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Austin, TX


Charley Wilkison took over as CLEAT’s new executive director on Jan. 1, and has set a blistering pace for internal restructuring and technological innovation. The CLEAT Executive Board in October selected Wilkison, who for nearly two decades served as the director of CLEAT’s Public Affairs Division, in October. He emerged as one of three finalists from more than 70 applicants nationwide to replace retiring ExecutiveDirector John Burpo. “The overall focus moving for-ward is to invest heavily in the membership infrastructure,” Wilki-son said. “We immediately hired new people and created several new positions so personnel would no longer be stretched so thin across the state. I’ve worked with the employee union to adjust salaries to make sure they are competitive with the marketplace.” CLEAT also paid off the debt incurred by the Texas Peace Of-ficers Memorial Monument, presented the Executive Board with a balanced operating budget and maintained $1 million in the re-serve fund. Among the new positions created since being named only the third executive director in CLEAT’s 38-year history is new staff representative for the North Sector of Texas and one new attorney for North Texas and other one for South Texas. And just before the beginning of the year, CLEAT also unveiled a first-of-its-kind smart phone app called the CLEAT Tactical Bag. The trademarked app with patent-protected coding gives officers in the field a way to instantly connect with an a CLEAT lawyer whenever they find themselves in a critical incident that could put their careers at risk. “CLEAT’s always led through innovation, and this breakthrough

continues that tradition,” Wilki-son said. “We’re the organiza-tion that invented the notion of cops going to law school then coming back to represent cops.” As Public Affairs director, Wilkison was CLEAT’s point person in the Texas Capitol, lob-bying lawmakers and statewide elected leaders. He was also the orgainization media spokesman, field campaign director and PAC Treasurer. “The decision by the Execu-tive Board to select Charley as

executive director recognizes that we have a 20-year history of winning in the Texas Capitol and dominating political landscape on behalf of law enforcement officers,” said CLEAT President Sgt. Todd Harrison. Wilkison, who holds a degree in political science from Texas A&M University-Commerce, came to CLEAT from the world of government and politics. He worked in his first campaign as a volunteer in a county sheriff race at age 18. In college, he ran po-litical campaigns and worked as a speechwriter and as a media and political strategist. He also served on the legislative staffs in both the Texas House and the Senate. “CLEAT is looking forward,” Wilkison said. “We have more lawyers, more representatives in the field, and that means better delivery of member services. We are the largest group on behalf of law enforcement officers in the state and we are well poised to dominate through cutting edge member services as well as growth in membership.”

New Leadership Aims To Bring CLEAT Closer To You

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