By Lisa Falkenberg, The Associated Press
Dallas County Sheriff Jim Bowles said he has “no intention whatsoever” of resigning, despite a felony indictment against him this week and a demand Friday by 40 of his employees that he step aside.
Bowles is charged with funneling political contributions into his personal bank accounts. The indictment came Wednesday, the day after he lost a primary bid to keep the job he’s held for 19 years.
“If these charges were alleged against us, we would not be allowed to be here,” Sgt. Don Roe said at a news conference attended by officers and clerks of the sheriff’s department. “Why is he better than we are? We’re asking that he step down.”
The employees said that the turmoil and uncertainty created by the sheriff’s indictment made it impossible for him to effectively lead the department, which has 500 sworn officers and 1,285 other employees.
But Bowles, 75, called the resignation demands “unreasonable and clearly politically motivated.” He said he would remain in office until his term ends in January.
“It is hypocritical that some employees whom we all trust to act as guardians of the law would ask me to resign from office before I am afforded the right to a full trial,” Bowles said. “I will have a trial before a jury of my peers and expect to be exonerated when the facts of the charges are fully addressed.”
If Bowles doesn’t change his mind, his employees said they would ask Dallas County District Attorney Bill Hill to begin proceedings to remove Bowles on grounds of “official misconduct.”
But Hill has no power to initiate removal proceedings, said Bob Shell, chief of the district attorney’s civil section. He said the state statute requires a citizen to petition a district judge and provide evidence of reasonable cause for removal.
If the judge finds reasonable cause, the judge could suspend Bowles until a jury trial is held, Shell said.
Generally, though, an indictment alone does not constitute official misconduct, he said.
The employee groups said they were prepared to submit a citizen’s petition. The felony charge against Bowles stems from a special prosecutor’s investigation into whether Bowles illegally accepted gifts from Jack Madera, a vendor who later won the Dallas County jail’s commissary contract even though it was worth about $400,000 less in annual revenue than other bids.
The inquiry began after The Dallas Morning News reported that Madera paid for thousands of dollars in meals and trips for Bowles between 1999 and 2001.
The grand jury later expanded its investigation to several other counties where Madera had done business. Madera was indicted in January along with two former associates for allegedly using a forged document to obtain a Kaufman County jail contract in 1997. Denton County Sheriff Weldon Lucas was indicted earlier this week on two charges of aggravated perjury.
Chris Heaton, executive director of the 10,000-member Texas Municipal Police Association, said he believes Bowles’ indictment is reason enough to remove him from office.
“We’re not making a presumption of guilt. It has to do with the integrity of the department,” Heaton said. “The sheriff is the image of the department and his image is tarnished in a way that cannot be recuperated in the next nine months.”
Deputies and other employees have long complained of Bowles’ detached leadership and believe his dysfunctional relationship with county commissioners has cost them pay raises, benefits and new equipment. But the employees said Friday that morale is at an all-time low after the indictment.
Roe, the sergeant, said that by speaking out, employees were tempting the wrath of an angry sheriff who is “looking for someone to strike at.”
“The people behind me, we’re concerned about our professional jobs. We’re concerned about our pay checks next month. There’s nothing that could stop the sheriff from coming in and firing every one of us right now,” Roe said.
“All we want is a little bit of protection from a man who’s sitting in a corner office right now, who in our opinion has no right to be there.”