Mayor fires entire police department less than a week after issues were ‘resolved’
By Leah Bolling
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COHUTTA, Georgia (WRCB) — The City of Cohutta mayor tells Local 3 News that he has fired the entire Cohutta Police Department in the wake of a recent controversy between the force and city leaders.
The Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office is handling public safety until the matter is resolved.
The news comes after last week’s meeting between Mayor Ron Shinnick and the department in an effort to resolve an issue where the town’s former clerk, Pam Shinnick, who is Mayor Ron Shinnick’s wife, continued to have access to town information after her termination.
The Cohutta mayor told Cohutta Police Chief Greg Fowler on Wednesday morning that the police department will be shutting down. He is currently informing officers and clearing equipment from the building.
Some city officials were not notified and are still learning of the news.
Fowler is no longer employed by the department.
The Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office says Town of Cohutta residents will not be affected by the loss of the police department, and that response times will not change.
Bryan Rayburn, the town’s attorney, declined to comment on the situation when asked by Local 3 News.
PREVIOUS STORY: Tensions between town leaders and the Cohutta Police Department appear to have eased following a dispute over a former town clerk’s role and access to sensitive systems.
The issue surfaced after several police officers submitted complaint letters raising concerns that former clerk Pam Shinnick, who is Mayor Ron Shinnick’s wife, continued to have access to town information after her termination. Officers also reported delays in receiving their paychecks during that period.
On Thursday morning, Mayor Shinnick and members of the police department met at City Hall to publicly address the situation and outline a resolution.
“Through open dialogue and good faith mediation, we were able to come together, resolve concerns and reaffirm our shared commitment to serving the citizens of Cohutta with integrity and respect,” Police Chief Greg Fowler said.
Mayor Shinnick echoed that sentiment, saying the town worked through the issue with support from the community, police department and legal counsel.
Officers who had signed the complaint letters were present at the meeting and have since rescinded their complaints.
Town attorney Bryan Rayburn said the intent was never to escalate the situation but to ensure concerns were addressed and operations continued smoothly.
“It was never the goal to get caught up in litigation or to create a huge mess for the town,” Rayburn said. “It was to get the process rolling on getting someone else involved in this position so that their complaints and their concerns were timely addressed.”
Rayburn said the town faced a temporary challenge after Shinnick’s termination because no one else was qualified to manage payroll. During that time, she was briefly brought back under supervision to complete essential financial tasks.
“The mini solution for a period of time was to bring Mrs. Shinnick back under supervision so that the business of the town could be completed,” he said.
Rayburn said he could not specify exactly when Shinnick fully left her role but added he does not believe she received special treatment due to her relationship with the mayor.
“I think if it had been anyone, we probably would have been in a situation where we would have had to hold on to them for a little bit,” he said. “She was fired. She couldn’t give a two-week notice. We were just in an impossible situation.”
Town officials said Shinnick no longer has access to any municipal systems. An outside payroll company has been hired to handle employee pay, and multiple staff members will be trained to perform clerk duties moving forward.
Lt. Ryan Fowler said the police department is satisfied with the outcome.
“We’re satisfied. Everything that we had requested seems to be coming to fruition,” he said, noting that some details remain confidential due to personnel laws.
The next Cohutta Town Council meeting is scheduled for May 12, and any concessions that officers had will be addressed at that time.
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