Henderson Chief of Police Hollie Chadwick is not the department’s first boss to be asked — or told — to give up their position in recent years.
The past two decades have seen multiple chiefs leave the Henderson Police Department amid controversy — some voluntarily and some not. Here is a look back at what precipitated their departures:
Jutta Chambers (2008 to 2012)
After a Henderson police sergeant was shown on a widely viewed video kicking a motorist in diabetic shock in 2010, and an ensuing settlement cost taxpayers nearly $300,000, Chief Jutta Chambers came under fire for how she handled the incident. The sergeant, Brett Seekatz, kept his job and was later promoted to lieutenant in 2016. However, in 2012, the city asked Chambers to resign, and Chambers told her employees that she would retire effective March 1.
Chambers did not make herself available to discuss her decision to retire with the media, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.
Doug Gillespie, then the Clark County sheriff, said he and Chambers had their officers collaborate in efforts to reduce auto thefts and traffic fatalities, among other initiatives. He described Chambers as “a forward-thinking law enforcement professional.”
Patrick Moers (2012 to 2017)
Amid an “internal investigation,” Chief Patrick Moers was removed from his position in 2017. Deputy Chief Peters, who was then made acting chief, said he could not “offer further comment on the circumstances” behind the action. City officials also refused to say whether Moers had been fired or placed on administrative leave.
In 2018, multiple sources — who were granted anonymity to protect them from retribution — told the Review-Journal that the department’s probe into sexual harassment allegations against Moers is what prompted his removal. At the time and in the aftermath of his departure, city leaders concealed this and misrepresented the nature of his separation, the Review-Journal reported previously.
An outside law firm’s eight-day investigation obtained by the Review-Journal later substantiated claims of inappropriate conduct by Moers.
Investigators found — among other things — that Moers sent an employee sexually suggestive text messages, including one with a photo of an adult store and the text, “you are forever associated with it when I go passed.”
Moers told the Review-Journal that the investigation was biased and that he didn’t recall sending the message. He added that the text messages he sent were not harassing in nature.
LaTesha Watson (2017 to 2019)
In March 2019, Henderson officials asked police Chief LaTesha Watson to voluntarily resign as the city’s top law enforcement officer, according to a separation agreement obtained by the Review-Journal. According to the document, Watson was placed on paid leave indefinitely and given three weeks to decide whether to sign the agreement.
By mid-April, Watson missed her opportunity to sign the agreement and was fired, the Review-Journal previously reported.
Deputy City Manager Bristol Ellington declined further comment on Watson’s firing then. However, city documents revealed that Watson was fired partly for creating distrust and division between management and unions and being uncooperative with an independent investigator.
Watson filed a lawsuit against the city in September 2020, alleging, among other things, she faced racial and gender discrimination. According to federal court records, the case is still ongoing.
Thedrick Andres (2019 to 2023)
Henderson police unions presented their vote of no confidence in Chief Thedrick Andres during a public comment period at the City Council meeting in November 2022.
According to a statement from the Henderson Police Officers and Henderson Police Supervisors Associations, more than 95 percent of their members voted against Andres, who was sworn in as chief in 2019, saying that he cultivated a hostile work environment and discriminated against officers based on gender and sexuality.
The council did not take action at the meeting.
Before adjournment, then-Mayor Debra March expressed support for Andres’ leadership.
During an interview with the Review-Journal, Andres said he was proud of his work as chief.
“I plan to continue to try to be the first one to sit at the table with our unions and to work in a collaborative process,” he said.
Two months later, he announced in an internal memo that he would retire to “move closer to family.”
Andres is now the police chief at the Cibolo Police Department in Texas, according to the city of Cibolo’s website.
Reporting from the Review-Journal archives was used to compile this list.
Contact Akiya Dillon at adillon@reviewjournal.com.