HOCKLEY COUNTY SHERIFF REMOVED FROM POST

Hockley County Sheriff David Kinney was temporarily removed from
office without pay Thursday after the county's attorney filed a
lawsuit claiming Kinney acted incompetently and improperly in his role.

The suit surfaced just over a month after two Hockley County deputies
were arrested on federal drug charges related to a major methamphetamine ring.

Lubbock Judge Blair Cherry signed the order removing Kinney from
office Thursday afternoon, according to court documents. Cherry
issued a restraining order to keep Kinney from accessing county
property or influencing witnesses.

Kinney, who has served as sheriff since 2005 and has been an employee
of the department for more than 20 years, is accused of harassing a
federal informant, falsely reporting on fees collected by his wife,
Hockley County Constable Jennifer Kinney, and improperly supervising
his employees.

County Attorney Christopher Dennis said he began his investigation of
Kinney on July 11, the day after Chief Deputy Gordon Bohannon and
Deputy Jose Quintanilla were arrested in connection with the federal
drug investigation.

The U.S. Attorney's Office contributed to the investigation, he said.

"If the sheriff is engaged in incompetence or misconduct while in
office, then that needs to be done as soon as it can," Dennis said of
Kinney's potential permanent removal.

While there are no current criminal investigations into Kinney's
conduct, Dennis said the civil suit would not interfere with any
future charges should they be pursued.

Court filings address in detail the possible illegal arrest of Robert
Stanley, a federal informant who was taken into custody on June 9 by
Kinney and Bohannon without probable cause.

Kinney and Bohannon believed Stanley had tipped off the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to possible illegal activities of an
associate of Kinney's, documents show.

Kinney and Bohannon both committed an illegal search of Stanley's
vehicle following a traffic stop and arrested him for possession of
an illegal weapon, according to the suit.

The weapon in question - a 6-inch knife - was not illegal because it
was stored in Stanley's car while it was under his control, the documents read.

Also addressed is the fact that roughly one-third of the sheriff's
department is under a criminal investigation of some kind or has been
fired in recent months.

County officials temporarily appointed Kevin Davis, an investigator
in the district attorney's office, to the sheriff's post until the
situation can be sorted out.

Davis has worked as an investigator in Hockley County for six years,
before which he held various positions in other law enforcement
agencies throughout the state.

"I want to begin rebuilding the relationships that have been
damaged," Davis said, adding remaining personnel in the department
will be evaluated as one of his first acts in the temporary post.

The decision to remove Kinney will be up to a jury, Dennis said,
though no court date has been set. Kinney could avoid being forcibly
removed from office by resigning, but Dennis said he had not spoken
to him since filing the suit.

Attempts by The Avalanche-Journal to find a contact number for Kinney
were unsuccessful