Former Dothan Police Chief John Powell - Trial Day Set For October 22

Rickey Stokes

Viewed: 5146

Posted by: RStokes
Date: Sep 29 2012 12:25 PM

ESCAMBIA COUNTY FL:    When Dothan Police Chief John White retired after 10 years as Police Chief, Dothan City Manager ( who came to Dothan from out of state ) said his most important hire as City Manager would be that of a Police Chief.

City Manager Mike West sought out and employed John Russell Powell as Police Chief of Dothan. Powell came to Dothan, unemployed, to take over the reigns of the Dothan Police Department. Powell had recently sought election as Escambia County Florida Sheriff. The election was a bitter fought election with Powell loosing and being unemployed.

Powell came to Dothan. In his five years as Police Chief, in my opinion, he worked to destroy  the Dothan Police Department. He did so with a due to diligence to destroy the carreer of men and women who had worked to build a respectable department in Dothan. During his tenure, Powell ran off more than 80 men and women of the Dothan Police Department.

Secret meetings held by Powell in the Dothan office of the FBI. Meetings alleged with the purpose of getting people to wear wires attempting to set up officers. The reason for the meeting at the FBI Office is reported to be because they have equipment to detect recording devices. Meetings where it is reported to have had discussions concerning his and Mike West plans to get certain people within the Dothan Police Department. One of those even included Houston County Sheriff Andy Hughes. At the time he was a patrol sergeant with Dothan Police Department.

And if the public really knew what all went on, the conspiracies that City Manager Mike West and John Powell conspired  in order to destroy the career of people who were born and lived in Dothan they would be outraged.

While serving as Dothan Police Chief, John Powell filed a lawsuit against Ron McNeesby, the Sheriff of Escambia County Florida. The person he ran against for Sheriff and lost the election to.

Then while serving as Dothan Police Chief, Powell went to Escambia County and wrote letters endorsing David Morgan for Sheriff over Ron McNeesby. Morgan went on to defeat McNeesby and is the current Escambia County Sheriff.

After 5 years of being allowed by 7 whimps on the Dothan Commission to destroy the Dothan Police Department, a new Mayor was coming on board. That Mayor, Mike Schmitz, was a businessman and one that would not allow the continued terror of the Dothan Police Department under John Powell. Seeing that handwriting on the wall, Schmitz knowing the majority of the citizens of Dothan had zero confidence in the Powell administration, Powell left Dothan Police Department and went to work with the State of Florida.

Election time for Escambia County Sheriff came around. Powell, with his family living in Dothan, his working in Tallahassee ran for Sheriff in Escambia County Florida. The man he endorsed while serving as Dothan Police Chief, David Morgan, suddenly was not the man to continue to serve as Escambia County Sheriff. The campaign became bitter. But everything Powell becomes involved in becomes bitter.

During the campaign John Powell was arrested on 7 counts of Cashier’s Check Campaign Contributions over $ 50. The arrest was based on indictments by an Escambia County Florida Grand Jury. A grand jury selected from the same group of people Powell was seeking to elect him. Powell lost the election with Morgan trouncing on Powell with the number of votes he garnered.

Powell had arraignments on the 7 misdemeanor charges on August 3. The case is assigned to Judge Thomas Dannheisser III. Powell is represented by Attorney Eric D. Stevenson.

We will be monitoring the court case. Since there are 80 former members of Dothan Police Department interested in what happens and probably many current members of Dothan Police Department interested, we might just rent a bus and carry a crowd to the court appearance.

Efforts To Destroy

While serving as Dothan Police Chief, John Powell sent four police cars to my office because of a parking violation.

This web site covered what John Powell was doing, covered the conspiracies of he and Mike West, and covered his discipline of those he did not like. Where punishment for one who was in his fold was not the same as others who were out of his fold.

In fact, Dothan Police Chief John Powell was involved in a ticket fixing scam with now Dothan Police Chief Greg Benton. Benton was a patrol supervisor at the time. The ticket was issued by Officer Clark Allums and issued to IT Director Tim Stewart. This web site uncovered the actions. After this web site, WWNT and a member of The Dothan Eagle, Mark Randall, uncovered their actions, the ticket was re-issued and paid.

However, Dothan flexed it’s muscles and got Randall fired from The Dothan Eagle. Powell later had me arrested on Perjury charges on a form I sign in the bonding business. A Judge was brought in from Brewton Alabama and he dismissed the case.I was represented by a legal "dream team" of Derek Yarbrough, John White, Tom Brantley and John Gormley. All came to my aid, for free, because they saw the abuse of the badge and power of Powell, apparently approved by City Manager Mike West and the 7 wimps.

However, the 7 spineless whimps ( Mayor and Commissioners ) never held Powell or West accountable for the abuse of the badge and the power bestowed upon them.

West most important hire in Dothan was the Police Chief. He royally messed that up. He was never held accountable for those actions. He and Powell remain friends today.

Monitor His Court Case

We will monitor what happens in the Powell court case. I for one am interested in it because during his reign of terror on Dothan, my family was afraid of what he would do to them.

Many men and women in the Dothan Police Department were in constant fear of what would happen to them, who was wearing a wire, what were they going to try and do. Where the punishment did not fit the crime.

Some in the Dothan Police Department that benefited during the Powell reign still have beholding to him. And this is scary.

We will keep you informed.

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