VAN ZANDT COUNTY, Texas — The Van Zandt County Sheriff and two of his deputies have been charged with False Statement to a Peace Officer after they allegedly lied to a Texas Ranger.
VAN ZANDT COUNTY, Texas — The Van Zandt County Sheriff and two of his deputies have been charged with False Statement to a Peace Officer after they allegedly lied to a Texas Ranger.
Sheriff Steve Hendrix, Chief Deputy Jerry Wood and Sergeant Blake Snell allegedly lied to a Texas Ranger during an excessive force investigation during an interview in December 2021 according to authorities.
Later, on January 10, 2022, Craig Shelton, former Van Zandt Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy, admitted to striking a handcuffed inmate without justification
The officers were indicted on March 25 according to court records.
Both Hendrix and Wood previously worked at the Kaufman County Sheriff's office under former Sheriff David Byrnes.
In a statement released to inForney.com today by Van Zandt County District Attorney, Tonda Curry, her office was first notified of the event last November.
"In November, 2021, the Van Zandt County Criminal District Attorney’s Office received written evidence of an incident of excessive use of force against an inmate by a member of the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office," Curry said in the release.
"As District Attorney, I immediately took the steps necessary to request an investigation by the Texas Rangers into the allegation. The Rangers’ investigation began in December. On January 10, 2022, Craig Shelton, then Chief Deputy at the Sheriff’s Office, admitted to the Ranger that he had struck a handcuffed individual in the face without justification. Once the Rangers’ investigation was completed there was probable cause to believe that other officers at the Sheriff’s Department had witnessed the incident but were not truthful when interviewed by the Ranger," Curry said.
"With this information I determined that the appropriate course of action was to bring in a Special Prosecutor. I appointed Bill Turner to handle the investigation and any resulting case. Mr. Turner is an experienced prosecutor who served thirty years as the elected District Attorney of Brazos County in College Station," Curry said.
While Texas law does not require Hendrix to resign, it does require that Wood and Snell be relieved of their duties as they are not permitted to work while under indictment.
inForney.com has not been able to confirm their termination as of press time.
This is a developing story.