Police Chief State Investigation Ongoing

Eagleville officials are expecting to meet again soon with investigators from the Tennessee Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) Commission regarding questions surrounding Police Chief Everett Stone’s certification.

City Recorder Michelle Bennett and Mayor Nolan Barham have already met with POST investigators in the probe that began last month after the agency learned about questions related to Stone’s meeting POST’s requirements for police officers.

"We’ll be meeting with them along with ‘Stoney’ sometime in April," Barham said at Thursday night’s council meeting.

Eagleville council members voted unanimously at their February meeting to put Stone, age 63, on administrative leave without pay pending the outcome of the investigation.

Since Stone was placed on administrative leave, the Rutherford County sheriff’s office has provided police protection in Eagleville.

"I want to thank Sheriff Truman Jones again for the extra coverage," Barham said Thursday night.

Among the issues expected to be considered in the POST commission investigation are how many hours Stone worked because a full-time officer must be certified. Certification requires 400 hours training at a POST approved training academy. An officer who works more than 20 hours a week or 100 hours a month is classified as full-time.

According to state law, any person who employs someone who he knows does not meet the minimum POST commission standards or any person who signs the paycheck of anyone who fails to meet the qualifications as a police officer, can be prosecuted for a Class A misdemeanor and be subject to a fine of up to $1,000.

According to information in Stone’s personnel file obtained under the Tennessee Public Records Act, the Kentucky native joined the Eagleville Police Department in June 1988. He was made police chief in about 1995.

Prior to his employment in Eagleville, Stone was a patrol deputy for 10 years at the Henderson County, Kentucky, sheriff’s department and held the rank of sergeant for the last two years of that service.

At the time of Stone’s service in Kentucky, that state did not require for a deputy to be certified or have special training, according to a 1995 letter from Henderson County Sheriff Dennis Clary. Later the department established a merit system. At the time Stone worked as a deputy, he did not have to work under the merit system nor did he have to be certified, Clary wrote.

Stone has worked part-time during his career in Eagleville because he had another job, but it is unclear how many hours he has worked since he became Eagleville’s only police officer in about 2003. During his tenure in Eagleville, he has not become certified.

Letters in Stone’s personnel file show at least former Mayor Billy Lynch was aware of the 20-hour per week limit. In five letters written in 1993, Lynch informed the POST commission that Stone, who was then part time, would be working more than 20 hours per week.

"We understand that we are not allowed to do this for more than 30 days," Lynch wrote.

Letters written by current Mayor Nolan Barham in 1994 and 1995 to the POST commission indicate he was aware that Stone was not certified and was aware that he needed to be if he worked full time.

In an Oct. 28, 1994, letter, Barham wrote that Stone had worked as a part-time officer for the Eagleville Police Department for six years at that time.

"I would like to request special consideration for Sergeant Stone in regards to receiving his state certification so that he may serve our community on a full-time basis," Barham wrote.

Barham wrote also in the Oct. 28, 1994, letter that he wanted Stone certified so he could work full time "at which time he could accept the position of chief of police."

And the mayor asked the state at that time to certify Stone based on his "outstanding record of experience in lieu of attending the eight weeks of training at the Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy for Basic Police School."

In a Dec. 22, 1994, letter to the POST commission, Barham requested that Stone be allowed to "challenge the POST test for certification."

Brian Grisham, executive secretary of the POST commission, said in an earlier interview that whatever experience Stone had at that time was not sufficient to challenge the POST test.

"He needed to go to an entire law enforcement academy (program) and he never did that," Grisham said.

In a June 19, 1995, letter Barham wrote that Stone had been given full-time status with the Eagleville Police Department.

"We hope that this will help in your consideration of his certification," Barham wrote.

When asked on March 5 about the availability of correspondence from the POST commission in response to Lynch’s 1993 and Barham’s 1994 and 1995 letters, City Recorder Michelle Bennett said no such correspondence was available.

Barham said Thursday night that he could not discuss the police matter because of the ongoing investigation.

However, he did say that the issue is not Stone’s being certified as a policeman but is the title as the police chief.

"I had to knowingly know that a person who is not certified could not be police chief," he said. "We are not the only little city in the state or in Middle Tennessee where this has come up, and I knowingly did not do anything wrong."

Barham said when he "first knowingly" found out about the requirement, "I went to Stoney and said I’m going to have to ask you to step down as police chief because you don’t have certification."

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