I was passing through Bardwell Saturday evening on the way to I-35 (it was a shortcut from I-45) and was ticketed for an expired inspection sticker.
The thing about this ticket is that George Spurgeon – an illegally appointed reserve officer – was the cop who issued the citation.
There is still no municipal court in Bardwell.
And there is still no municipal employee legally allowed to collect fines and fees at Bardwell City Hall.
So this will be an interesting “test case” to say the least. Stay tuned.
Posted in: Ellis County & Best Southwest
drtuddle
July 21, 2008
Car won’t pass inspection?
Jane Hickerson
July 21, 2008
Maybe Bardwell will take one bloggers suggestion. I hear Jeff Smith is out of a job. Smith doesn’t play by the rules, either.
drtuddle, you always have the cutest remarks! I’ve run across several. Do you get to spend all your time thinking these things up? You get right to the heart of the matter.
Drtuddle
July 21, 2008
Just have the mind of a smart ass
?
July 21, 2008
OK, test case what? It’s not like it is something you can debate. Inspection sticker, yes it was expired or no it was not?
What difference would it make if Bardwell or TX DPS got you for it. You were in violation. Are you above the law?
Me
July 21, 2008
The difference is that someone who isn’t lawfully appointed as a police officer cannot write citations.
If you drive above the speed limit or with an expired sticker and don’t get caught by a police officer, you don’t pay a fine. Joey didn’t get caught by a police officer; he got caught by someone pretending to be a police officer.
Joey is not above the law, and neither are the people in Bardwell who are pretending to be police officers.
?
July 21, 2008
I thought we had that argument already here about the alleged illegal officers. If they are not legal then your right. But that doesn’t change the fact he was in violation.
slice
July 22, 2008
why is this guy an illegal officer? Texas state peace officer’s can write a ticket/it does not matter if its a full time officer or a reserve.
if this guy is a reserve he needs to learn from ferris pd, the days of cottongain(?) working his reserves and them getting paid.
hell i have seen this bardwell guy at the motor plex , and in dallas working side jobs.
?
July 22, 2008
what does any of that have to do with a traffic violation?
joejoe
July 22, 2008
How can you complain about an officer working illegally when you were driving around illegally?
Keep in mind, that to be approved by a city council, all it is an acknowledgement of the officer(s). So why any city council has failed to do something so simple is criminal.
I do believe that cities such as Bardwell, Cockrell Hill and many others should not exist.
***
Here’s the real story that we should be concerned with: the setting of fines.
A lot of these small city municiple courts charge fines that are comparable to larger ares like Dallas, Ft. Worth, Arlington, Garland, Houston and so on.
Why do these small cities need that much money in fines? Most of these departments employ reserve officers. The city is responsible for a police station, vehicle and vehicle equipment and gas. They provide the officer no training, uniforms or officer equipment. Where is the rest of the monies collected in these high fines?
If the City of Dallas charges $210.00 for a violation, that’s because there is a real need for the finances. It has probably cost the city more than $210.00 to issue the traffic citation.
Why would the citizens of the larger cities expect to be charged a greater amount of fines?
In short, they expect greater services, such as a trained and ‘working’ TACT/SWAT team, Juvenile Services, Homeland Security, Intelligence Divisions, Communications, Detention Services, Records/Legal Services, Auto Pound, and Property Room, only to name a few. They expect more than a one officer Administrative and Support Bureau. They expect a team of Administrators making decisions, right or wrong decisions, but that is what is expected.
A real city council should look at other ways to raise revenue. They should actively seek out the corporations that could create a major tax base. Maybe the city of Palmer or Ferris should entice the likes of a major supermarket or several small to medium-sized established factories. How about incintives for home growned businesses? After the security of the businesses, others will see these cities as something other than a high-fine-charging speed-trap.
By the way, I’ve never had a citation and have never had any personal dealings with any of these cities I wrote about.
I wrote this in a hurry and I know there are Speliinging and Grammmmmmer problems.
Oink Oink
July 22, 2008
The officers are not legal because they were not approved by the City Council BEFORE they were put on the streets or appointed to the position by the Chief of Police. The council did not approve them. There is a letter from TCLEOSE to the fact, and the mayor has also confirmed it and says he has no plans to get them legally appointed. Another version of Jinker law.
Joey Dauben
July 22, 2008
The law enforcement community still doesn’t seem to get it.
And I know the arguments against me for being “in violation” are straight from guys who are tunnel-focused.
The issue is not whether or not I was “in violation.”
If you want to be treated like a police officer, you will first have to become a police officer.
And to do that, according to state law, you must be commissioned and be approved by the city council (depending on your city’s population, laws are different), which Bardwell’s reserve officers were not.
So, regardless if I had a truckload of AK-47s bound for Iraq, if I was stopped by an illegal cop, ticketed by an illegal cop and otherwise detained or arrested by an illegal cop, then the entire CASE is null and void as if it didn’t happen.
So the issue here isn’t what traffic law I violated. It’s “are these cops even legal?”
And the answer is no.
A. Shepherd
July 22, 2008
Wow! Since some think that the ticket came from a pretend officer then why dosent Joey put a post-it note on his windshield and pretend it is an inspection sticker. With all that he has stirred up in Bardwell he is lucky the pretend officer didnt put a pretend bullet in his pretend ass!
-Editors Note: Joey does not have a pretend ass, although Bardwell has pretend officers. Just like Ellis County has pretend prosecutors…..Don’t you know that by now Mr. Wilson? If you think things have been stirred up in Bardwell, wait to see what’s next. I dont think they can come after everyone. Spurgeon doesn’t have the “grapes” to do it.
Joe B
July 22, 2008
Come on A.Shepherd get a life you sound like a true idiot.Or do you pretend to be one.
LCPL23
July 22, 2008
George Spurgeon is a cop, I guess. It’s funny out of 17 to 18 years of Law Enforcement experience, he still just has a basic peace officer license. That’s the same as someone who is just 2 to 4 years out of the academy. By now he should have a master peace officer license, but it appears he is to lazy to take any classes or further his career. I would love to do a public information act request and find out what happened to him in Irving and Frisco. If he had stuck with those PD’s he would be making real good money. But instead he’s working as a reserve for free in a little town of 300 people like Bardwell, Texas. I t doesn’t make sense to go from Irving or Frisco PD to Bardwell, Texas. That would be a step down, not a step up. If he had stuck with those PD’s by now he would have some rank and be making 70K to 80K a year. But instead he sis now stuck in a town of just a few hundred people working for free just to stay a cop. Bardwell would be a last resort for an Officer to keep his commission, not a chance to further one’s career.
Curious
July 22, 2008
Hey Oink Oink… just curious… are you saying that police officers appointed to the position by the Chief of Police are not legal and cannot enforce laws on the street because they were not approved by the City Council? Where in Tcleose can I see this rule please? Am curious ‘coz there are police officers appointed and have not been approved by the City Council but I see them on the streets issuing tickets!
Oink Oink
July 23, 2008
Chapter 341 Texas Local Government Code, specifically 341.012(g).
(g) An appointment to the reserve force must be approved by
the governing body before the person appointed may carry a weapon or
otherwise act as a peace officer. On approval of the appointment of
a member who is not a peace officer as described by Article 2.12,
Code of Criminal Procedure, the person appointed may carry a weapon
only when authorized to do so by the chief of police and only when
discharging official duties as a peace officer.
Oink Oink
July 23, 2008
By the way, for the definition of “governing body” see Chapter 551.002 Govt Code. That is defined as the City Council.
Therefore, before the cop hits the streets and plays police (as noted George is an Irving reject), he had to have been appointed and approved by the City coucil prior to his commissioning.
Wonder if he got that in Saint Jo (hes also a reserve there)…..
joe rojas
July 23, 2008
How do you know they have not been approved by the council? It takes 1 (one) minute.
Oink Oink
July 23, 2008
City council and the Mayor admit it!
Read the mayors previous quotes!
Curious
July 26, 2008
Thanks Oink Oink for the heads up. Does this law apply to all small town USA or just to some?
Texas Blue
February 17, 2012
Let me shed some light on what you guys are talking about. What that law is reffering to in the Texas Government Code, is that if a city wants to have a reserve force it must be in it’s city ordinance book. In order for it to be there it must be voted on and approved by the council. Once it’s there the Chief of Police has the sole duty of appointing officers as a reserve. No city council or mayor appoints an officer through TCLEOSE. That is done by the Chief of Police.