Mistrust, divided loyalties, retaliation and bad police work are just a few of the issues the now disbanded Odessa Police Department faced.
Documents exclusively obtained by the 41 Action News Investigators show more than a dozen complaints filed by Odessa police officers against other officers in the department in the last nine months.
It all came to a head last month.
Only 41 Action News was there as Lafayette County Sheriff's deputies arrested former Odessa Police Officer Archie Strutton. Strutton is accused of slashing the tires of Odessa police cars.
The arrest came the same day as Odessa police officers were turning in their badges and equipment after the city's Board of Aldermen voted to disband the department.
The Lafayette County Sheriff's Office now mans the old police department.
The 41 Action News Investigators spoke to customers at Odessa's JJ's Down Home Cafe about the new policing arrangement.
"I think it's a good thing, that way they can patrol the town a little bit," said Michael Lockhart.
"I know quite a few Sheriff's patrol and they're very good police," said Allen Bush.
The exclusively obtained documents of Odessa police internal complaints include an officer falling asleep on duty while driving and crashing into a curb, multiple profanity-laced tirades by one officer to superiors, bodily harm threats, and even a complaint about an officer's dog relieving itself at the department.
"There ain't not reason to fight, you got a job to do, do it," said Wayne McNeese.
But those documents show doing that job was also a problem.
Issues included incomplete paper work in dozens of cases, failure to do timely follow up interviews in a murder case and a failure for officers to show up in a felony drug case.
The prosecutor had to make a plea deal in the drug case and noted in a memo, "I am very disappointed that someone I fully believe was dealing drugs in Odessa will face significantly less consequences than what justice dictates he deserves."
"Do other towns have these problems? I ain't heard of anything but I don't know," said McNeese. "Need to back up, re-group and start over again I think."
City leaders started acting on the problems before the police department was disbanded.
The Lafayette County Sheriff's Office started handling major crime cases in July at the request of City Administrator Mickey Ary.
The Board of Aldermen voted to disband the Odessa Police Department following a study by an attorney and then a city staff recommendation.
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Andy Alcock can be reached at anderson.alcock@kshb.com.
