LA VERGNE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Newly-revealed documents from the third-party investigation into the alleged sex scandal within the La Vergne Police Department show evidence that led to the firing of its police chief.
Chief Burrel “Chip” Davis was fired Monday afternoon just hours after being placed on administrative leave. This move was a direct result of the police department’s ongoing sex scandal investigation, according to La Vergne city officials.
New documents released by investigators shed light on exactly why Davis was removed from his position.
The investigation, led by Frost Brown Todd Law Firm in Nashville, consisted of interviews with multiple members of the police department, including Davis.
Over the course of speaking with Davis, investigators showed him screenshots of text message conversations between himself and another police supervisor. Those conversations consisted of the supervisor sending Davis naked photos and videos of a female officer.
Those text messages were sent in October, but the city only found out about sexual misconduct in the department after it was reported in December. The investigators determined Davis knew of the alleged sexual misconduct prior to the initial investigation and kept that information from Human Resources.
Once allegations of a sex scandal reached Human Resources, the former chief was called into H.R. The report said instead of sharing his knowledge of the sexual misconduct within the department, Davis texted his sergeant at the time, “IT’S OUT IN HR TALKING ABOUT IT NOW.” In a separate text, he wrote, “All bets off,” according to the report.
The initial investigation ended with five officers being fired for allegedly having sex on and off duty with each other, sending nude photos of themselves to other officers, failing to disclose relations to H.R., and lying about their actions during the investigation, according to city documents.
Throughout the course of the interview with investigators, Davis denied sending numerous messages in the exchanges, saying the messages had been tampered with, but investigators reached the conclusion that Davis did not “fully and truthfully…answer questions when required to do so by an investigator.”