A Houston County Sheriff’s Office investigation into Dothan Police Chief John Powell and City Attorney Len White is over, but the department isn’t saying much about it.
The sheriff’s office put out a press release Friday afternoon stating that the investigation was complete and had been turned over to District Attorney Doug Valeska for review.
Attempts to reach Valeska or Sheriff Andy Hughes for comment Friday afternoon were unsuccessful.
Dothan Police Officer RaeMonica Carney filed a criminal incident report with the sheriff’s office recently against Police Chief John Powell and Dothan City Attorney Len White, alleging witness intimidation and criminal coercion.
The investigation stems from an incident in which Carney said White singled her out, and then yelled and screamed at her during an interview about a pending wrongful death lawsuit filed against the City of Dothan and the Dothan Police Department.
Carney was questioned by White about her participation in a traffic crash investigation involving Tabitha Farmer in January 2007. A short time after being released from the first crash scene by police,
Farmer was involved in a traffic fatality that left Larry Downing dead after he was crushed against the Southern Family Market building by Farmer’s vehicle. Farmer pleaded guilty earlier this year to murder in the fatality, and was sentenced to serve 25 years in prison.
Carney said the interview boiled down to a difference of opinion between her and the other officers at the first crash scene. Carney said she did not feel Farmer was safe to continue driving after the first crash, but other officers allowed her to continue driving.
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