Temporary suspension of Officer Jeremy Bohannon

RECEIVED
April 28, 2021
5:50pm
City of Austin
OF
GAY
CLEARLY
Civil Service Office
FOUNDED
INTO
MEMORANDUM
Austin Police Department
Office of the Chief of Police
TO:
Joya Hayes, Director of Civil Service
FROM:
Joseph Chacon, Interim Chief of Police
DATE:
April 28, 2021
SUBJECT:
Temporary Suspension of Police Officer Jeremy Bohannon #7285
Internal Affairs Control Numbers 2020-1808
Pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 143 of the Texas Local Government Code, Section
143.052, and Rule 10, Rules of Procedure for the Firefighters', Police Officers' and
Emergency Medical Service Personnel's Civil Service Commission, I have temporarily
suspended Police Officer Jeremy Bohannon #7285 from duty as a City of Austin, Texas
police officer for a period of SEVEN (7) days. The temporary suspension is effective
beginning on April 29, 2021 and continuing through May 5, 2021.
I took this action because Officer Bohannon violated Civil Service Commission Rule
10.03, which sets forth the grounds for disciplinary suspensions of employees in the
classified service, and states:
No employee of the classified service of the City of Austin shall engage in,
or be involved in, any of the following acts or conduct, and the same shall
constitute cause for suspension of an employee from the classified service
of the City:
L.
Violation of any of the rules and regulations of the Fire
Department or Police Department or of special orders, as
applicable.
I
The following are the specific acts committed by Officer Bohannon in violation of Rule
10:
Officer Bohannon's Appearance in a Music Video:
On November 1, 2020, Officer Bohannon, while off-duty, participated as an actor in a
music video by a local Austin musician. Officer Bohannon portrayed a police officer in
the music video. He appeared in the video wearing a hat with the word "Police" displayed
in large letters, a vest with the word "Police," and a police-style duty belt with a firearm
and Taser visible. The breast badge on the vest was obscured with black tape and Officer
Bohannon's nose and mouth were covered by a mask.
The song playing in the video includes lyrics that glorify or condone violence.
Officer Bohannon was featured in two scenes in the video. In both of these scenes, he
depicts a uniformed police officer taking police action against members of the public. The
actions taken by Officer Bohannon in the video are not consistent with how the Austin
Police Department trains its officers.
The video was posted to Instagram and other sites on or about November 11, 2020. The
video has been viewed more than 1,000 times on Instagram and more than 3,000 times on
YouTube.
Complaint and Internal Affairs Investigation:
The Office of Police Oversight (OPO) received an anonymous complaint regarding
Bohannon's appearance in the video. On December 16, 2020, the OPO forwarded a formal
complaint to APD. There were also internal complaints regarding Officer Bohannon's
appearance in the video. The Internal Affairs Division (IA) opened an investigation.
As part its investigation, IA obtained a copy of the music video. It also obtained, from
Officer Bohannon, text messages that Officer Bohannon exchanged with people involved
in making the music video.
Through his work with the Police Athletic League, Officer Bohannon had a previous
relationship with the producer of the video, D.S. (a person whose identity is known to
Officer Bohannon). D.S. contacted Officer Bohannon asking Officer Bohannon to appear
in his son's music video and portray a police officer. According to Officer Bohannon, he
agreed to participate in the video after listening to 15 to 20 seconds of the song. Officer
Bohannon said that D.S. told him the song included expletives, but that an edited version
of the song would be posted with the video. Officer Bohannon did not receive any
compensation for appearing in the video and told investigators, "I was literally just there
helping some kids out." Officer Bohannon also indicated that he hoped his participation in
the video could help open a dialogue between police and the community.
2
The initial version of the video posted online included credits that named Officer
Bohannon. When Officer Bohannon learned that his name was in the credits, he asked D.S.
to edit the video to remove his name from the credits.
Officer Bohannon admitted to IA that he wore his APD-issued duty belt, firearm, and Taser
while he appeared in the video. Officer Bohannon did not have permission from the Chief
to appear in the video with these items.
Officer Bohannon told IA that he did not act in the video the way that he would act as an
on-duty police officer. Officer Bohannon admitted that he depicted "an officer that may
be unethical or maybe [holds] ill will towards somebody else, not rising to the [level]
of .you know brutality of hitting or being excessive." Officer Bohannon acknowledged
that acting in this manner in the video "definitely was not beneficial" and was actually
"harmful" to the relationship between the Police Department and the community.
Specifically, Officer Bohannon told IA that for people who recognize him in the video,
"it's detrimental if somebody thinks that's the way I feel or other people feel about that
situation."
Officer Bohannon also acknowledged that his appearance in the video undermined working
relationships he had within the Department. Specifically, when asked about the impact
that his appearance in the video had on other members of the Department, Officer
Bohannon stated:
I feel like between officers, I feel like I've lost trust with, you know, I'm sure
I've lost trust with a lot of people And so that's one thing that I regret, and
so I understand that people are disappointed. I understand that there may
[be] people who won't want to work with me anymore. And so I think that
effect that I've seen, is something that I regret probably the most, you know,
because I love this depart - I love the people I work with, um, I've never had
a negative experience in this department personally. And so, you know,
going through this, I know that it's had a major effect, um, on a lot of
officers and, you know, if that's the one thing if I could take anything back,
it would be, you know, that or at least making sure there was more context,
um, and thinking about the bigger picture before participating.
Officer Bohannon also admitted that other officers were "upset, you know, friends
disappointed and, you know, people stopped talking to "
When asked by IA whether he believed that he violated General Order 900.3.2 (Acts
Bringing Discredit Upon the Department) by appearing in the music video, Officer
Bohannon answered in the affirmative. Officer Bohannon expressed regret over his
participation in the video and assured that he would not repeat the missteps he made in this
situation.
3
By these actions, Officer Bohannon violated Rule 10.03(L) of the Civil Service Rules by
violating the following rules and regulations of the Austin Police Department:
Austin Police Department Policy 801.6(d): Equipment and Uniform
Regulations: Political Activities, Endorsements, and Advertisements
801.6(d) Political Activities, Endorsements, and Advertisements
Unless specifically authorized by the Chief of Police, Austin Police Department
employees may not wear any part of the uniform, be photographed wearing any
part of the uniform, utilize a department badge, patch or other official insignia, or
cause to be posted, published, or displayed, a photograph as an employee of the
Austin Police Department in order to:
(d)
Appear in any commercial, social or non-profit publication, or any
motion picture, film, video, public broadcast or on any website.
Austin Police Department Policy 900.3.2: General Conduct and
Responsibilities: Acts Bringing Discredit Upon the Department
900.3.2 Acts Bringing Discredit Upon the Department
Since the conduct of personnel both on-duty or off-duty may reflect directly upon
the Department, employees must conduct themselves at all times in a manner which
does not bring reproach, discredit, or embarrassment to the Department or to the
City.
(a)
Employees will not commit any act which tends to destroy public
confidence in, and respect for, the Department or which is
prejudicial to the good order, efficiency, or discipline of the
Department.
(b)
Employees will refrain from being a party to any malicious gossip,
rumor, report or activity, whether written or oral, that would tend to
bring discredit to the Department or any member thereof.
1.
"Malicious gossip, rumor, report or activity" includes
statements made with knowledge of their falsity or made
without regard to whether the statements are true or false.
(c)
Employees will not engage in any activity in which there is a
potential for conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of
interest with the lawful duties of the employee.
4
1.
"Conflict of interest" includes any activity which would tend
to influence a decision, create a bias or prejudice, or create a
gain or loss for any person or agency which would favor one
side or the other in conflict with the employee's official
duties, or which conflicts with the accomplishment of the
Department's mission or goals.
By copy of this memo, Officer Bohannon is hereby advised of this temporary suspension
and that the suspension may be appealed to the Civil Service Commission by filing with
the Director of Civil Service, within ten (10) days after receipt of a copy of this memo, a
proper notice of appeal in accordance with Section 143.010 of the Texas Local Government
Code.
By copy of this memo and as required by Section 143.057 of the Texas Local Government
Code, Officer Bohannon is hereby advised that such section and the Agreement Between
the City of Austin and the Austin Police Association provide for an appeal to an
independent third party hearing examiner, in accordance with the provisions of such
Agreement. If appeal is made to a hearing examiner, all rights of appeal to a District Court
are waived, except as provided by Subsection (j) of Section 143.057 of the Texas Local
Government Code. That section states that the State District Court may hear appeals of an
award of a hearing examiner only on the grounds that the arbitration panel was without
jurisdiction or exceeded its jurisdiction, or that the order was procured by fraud, collusion
or other unlawful means. In order to appeal to a hearing examiner, the original notice of
appeal submitted to the Director of Civil Service must state that appeal is made to a hearing
examiner.
appl
4/28/2021
JOSEPH CHACON, Interim Chief of Police
Date
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
I hereby acknowledge receipt of the above and foregoing memorandum of temporary
suspension and I have been advised that if I desire to appeal that I have ten (10) days from
the date of this receipt to file written notice of appeal with the Director of Civil Service in
accordance with the provisions of Chapter 143 of the Texas Local Government Code.
John
Police Officer Jeremy Bohannon 7285 #7285
4/28/21
Date
5