A town council in a small town in Georgia passed an ordinance May 8 reinstating the community’s police department after the mayor fired the entire police force two days earlier.
Cohutta is a small town of less than 800 people in northern Georgia, near the Tennessee border suburb of Chattanooga. But over the past couple of weeks, the town has been roiled with controversy amid a scandal involving the former town clerk, who is also the mayor’s wife.
A sign, posted last week in the town of about 930 people, announced that the police department had been dissolved “per Mayor Ron Shinnick.” It told people in need of help to call the Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office instead of the Cohutta Police Department.
That complaint was rescinded after mediation between the police department and the town led to Mrs. Shinnick being removed, a new town clerk was appointed, and payroll being handled by a third party as of April 30.
Mayor Ron Shinnick fired the entire department on May 6. Police Chief Brian Fowler told the Times-Free Press that he met with Shinnick that morning and asked him why; Shinnick told him the firings were due to a Facebook post made by the department in regard to the events.
The post, the entire Cohutta Police Department Facebook page, and its page on the town website have been taken down. They have not been restored as of the time of writing.
Shinnick reportedly rejected the idea that the firing of the police was retaliation.
He added that finding people to work for little to no pay in the small town is difficult, and that his wife had been “gracious” enough to step up to fill the need.
The mayor and town council held an extended private session shortly after 5:00 p.m., after which Shinnick was escorted out by Whitfield County Deputies. Vice Mayor Shane Kornberg told the assembled residents that the police force was not legally disbanded, and would be reinstated immediately with back pay. The town council also adopted an emergency ordinance prohibiting the mayor from terminating the department for 30 days.
The town meeting originally planned to discuss a formal request for Shinnick’s resignation and, if necessary, a third-party investigation into potential removal; Kornberg said those agenda items were tabled.
Fowler reportedly took the first police shift from 8:00 p.m. Friday to 10:00 a.m. Saturday, until another officer took over.
The council is expected to hold another meeting on Tuesday.
