UPDATE:Â After a special meeting on Friday, May 8, the Cohutta Town Council voted to reinstate the entire Cohutta Police Department. Mayor Ron Shinnick also remains in office, as of now.
Councilmembers said the mayor cannot remove the entire police department without providing written notice and a statement explaining the grounds for the action.
Councilmembers, the mayor, and town attorneys went into a private executive session shortly after 5:00 p.m.
“What occurred was that the mayor took action but did not consult me or the town council before he did it. So, when I got into digging into the town charter, I found those sections that I presented today. Essentially with the council, we decided was that we have to follow the charter. The charter is there for a reason,” said Cohutta Town Attorney Bryan Rayburn.Â
After more than an hour behind closed door discussions, Mayor Shinnick was escorted out of the meeting by Whitfield County deputies, while Mayor Pro-tem Shane Kornberg remained and led discussions.
“The mayor voluntarily decided he was going to leave… The police department is necessary for the protection of life, health, property, and public peace. We do not believe that they were legally disbanded and we are going to reinstate them immediately. They will receive their pay and their backpay,” said Mayor Pro-tem Shane Kornberg Friday evening.Â
“The remainder of our agenda tonight, including the discussion of recalling the mayor, we are going to table that indefinitely,” added Kornberg.
During the meeting, Kornberg said the town is consulting with multiple attorneys to ensure all actions are handled properly and legally. He also said the mayor did not follow the proper protocol in terminating the department.
The council plans to adopt an emergency ordinance immediately, reinstating the police department and the officers who were fired. Officers will also receive pay and back pay.
The emergency ordinance will prohibit the mayor from eliminating the entire department for the next 30 days.
“The citizens need to know that the council is going to follow the charter. They’re going to do what they think is right… At least for tonight, I hope the citizens realize that the council stepped in,” shared Rayburn.
The police officers will be given backpay. Rayburn shared with Local 3 News that they are working swiftly to resume police operations as soon as possible, hoping to have patrols up by Saturday.Â
Local 3 will continue to follow this story.
PREVIOUS STORY: A special meeting is set for Friday, May 8, to address the recent dissolution of the Cohutta Police Department.
The notice states the town council’s request to reinstate the Cohutta Police Department, an immediate removal of Mayor Ron Shinnick and an investigation into the removal of Mayor Shinnick.
The Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office will serve the area.
Wednesday morning, members of the Cohutta Police Department were notified of their firing, effective immediately, and operations were shut down.
Local 3 News spoke with former Cohutta Police Chief Greg Fowler on Wednesday morning, who said some town officials were not aware of the decision at that time.
Fowler could not comment on the incident in detail but did confirm they were clearing out the department and removing equipment from the building. Our crew on scene saw workers going in and out of the building with black bags and loading them into vehicles.
Cohutta Mayor Ron Shinnick told Local 3 News he fired the police department. This comes just days after town attorney Bryan Rayburn reassured officers’ jobs were safe during a special meeting.
“My understanding is that a lot of the police officers heard through the grapevine that they were going to be terminated because of the letters that they wrote,†said Rayburn last week. “I don’t think them exercising their First Amendment right and filing complaints is a valid reason to fire anybody.â€
Now, former Sgt. Jermey May, who was part of the recent firing, is speaking out on the situation. He describes Shinnick’s decision as a “personal vendetta.â€
“The citizens and the constituents of Cohutta are going to suffer in response because of the retaliation from the mayor, due to the fact that we brought to light about his spouse still working after she was terminated. This all comes to personal vendetta from the mayor, and I wholeheartedly believe that,†said May.
Cohutta’s town council voted to terminate the town clerk in January, but a complaint alleges she still had access to records as late as April.
May was one of the officers who submitted a complaint against the mayor’s wife and former town clerk, Pam Shinnick, who was fired earlier this year for causing a “hostile work environment.â€
Officers said they filed complaints because Shinnick still had access to personal, private information.
“I just hate the fact that we stand up for what’s right, just because it’s the mayor’s wife,†said May.
The Whitfield County Sheriff will take over operations in the area. However, their ability to have reliable response times to these calls is now a concern.
“The issue is going to be response times. Can a department that’s already limited be in the sheriff’s office, pick up an entire area that a full-time department was doing, on top of what they were normally doing? That’s going to be the safety and security of the citizens, and the constituents of Cohutta are going to suffer in response, because of the retaliation from the mayor,†said May.
We reached out to the town’s attorney, Bryan Rayburn, but he declined to comment.
Mayor Shinnick confirmed that he did fire the department but says he’s not sure what will come next.
A special meeting is set to be held Friday, May 7, at 5:00pm. According to the notice, the Cohutta Town Council is requesting a reinstatement of the Cohutta Police Department, a request for Mayor Shinnick’s immediate resignation and an investigation into the removal of Mayor Shinnick.
