After allegedly participating in numerous sex capades and wild parties during work hours, five officers from the same Tennessee police department were fired, and three more were suspended. According to an investigation conducted by La Vergne Mayor Jason Cole, five different male officers had sex with one woman officer, including when they were on duty and on city property.
According to an internal report of the investigation obtained by NBC affiliate WSMV, the La Vergne Police Department investigation started back in December, after Mayor Cole filed a report with the city’s human resources department regarding rumors of sex acts occurring within the department.
Officer Maegan Hall was fired, along with Sergeants Lewis Powell, Henry Ty McGowan, Detective Seneca Shields, and Officer Juan Lugo-Perez. Officers Larry Holloday, Patrick Magliocco, and Gavin Schoberl have been suspended.
In its investigation, the mayor’s office uncovered sexual relationships between Hall and the other fired members — none of which were disclosed to the department. As reported in the report, all fired officers, along with suspended officer Patrick Magliocco, admitted to sexual relations with Hall. He was both on duty at the time. Detective Seneca Shields allegedly admitted to receiving oral sex from Hall in the gym before returning to work.
As well as exchanging pictures of their genitalia, the officers allegedly held parties reminiscent of “Girls Gone Wild,” including one on a houseboat on Memorial Day, where a fellow officer allegedly hosted a hot tub party. There are no allegations of misconduct against the officer who owns the houseboat.
As we mentioned, WSMV has the full report, so you can read all the details in greater detail, including those about workplace violence and intimidation intended to interfere with an investigation. Overall, the findings do not suggest that the department has its sh*t together, to put it kindly.
This sex scandal effectively cut the entire staff of La Vergne, located about 30 minutes south of Nashville, by as much as 12% because the police department is relatively small, with only about 60 sworn officers. Burrel Davis, the city’s chief of police, has maintained that the department has “sufficient staff to cover all patrol shifts,” and that the actions of a few do not represent the department as a whole, since the firings and suspensions were announced.
The top priority moving forward will be rebuilding the public’s trust, Mayor Jason Cole told NBC News. What do you think?