Two police officers were fired Thursday by Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia.
Lancaster police arrested Dallas Police Department (DPD) Officer John Rozell in July for allegedly displaying a firearm in a manner meant to intimidate. He was reportedly in an argument with another person when he grabbed a rifle and displayed it threateningly. Somebody in the vicinity called 911, FOX 4 reported last year.
Rozell’s criminal case is still pending, but the charge contributed to his firing.
“When we’re right, regardless of the outside noise, we’re right,” Garcia told The Dallas Morning News (DMN). “But when we are wrong, we will hold ourselves accountable.”
Rozell’s termination was also based on his allegedly failing to secure his police equipment and being intoxicated while in public, according to an email sent to employees of DPD, per DMN.
However, the officer’s history of alleged criminal activity goes back further. Rozell has been accused of strangulation assault and unlawful restraint. Charges were filed against him in April 2020.
Rozell allegedly handcuffed a woman while off-duty. The woman was trying to leave his car at the time. She claimed she was slapped twice by Rozell after asking to leave his car. He allegedly grabbed the woman’s neck and then “pushed her down and restricted her breathing for approximately 45 seconds,” per DMN.
Despite five supervisors recommending that he be terminated for the offense, Rozell instead received a 30-day suspension under then-Police Chief Ulysha Reneé Hall, according to records obtained by DMN.
Another officer at DPD, Senior Corporal Ja’Qualyn Mitchell, was also recently fired. However, his termination stems from being arrested last November for allegedly driving a police vehicle while under the influence.
Mitchell was pulled over and arrested by officers with the Glenn Heights Police Department. He was subsequently placed on administrative leave by DPD pending an internal affairs investigation, CBS DFW reported.
The lawyer for both officers, Robert Rogers, said he wants to contest the terminations through the appeals process.
As necessary as their terminations may have been, the firing of the two officers comes at a time when violent crime is on the rise in Dallas, and DPD has been operating with a significant labor shortage. According to internal DPD data, there has been a nearly 5% increase in overall violent crime offenses (aggravated assaults, robberies, murders, and sexual assaults) year-to-date.