By Joanna Putman
Police1
ALEXANDRIA, Tenn. — All police officers with the Alexandria Police Department in Tennessee, including the chief, resigned within a span of one week, WTVF reported.
This sudden departure has shifted the responsibility of responding to local calls to the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department, located about 25 minutes away, according to the report.
Former Police Chief Travis Bryant, who resigned on August 16, along with another officer, expressed his personal conflict with the decision.
“To just up and leave like I did, it bothers me. But it is just what I felt was in the best interest for myself, and I had to do that,” Bryant stated. He cited difficulties working with the new city administration that took office on August 1, which led to his and his two colleagues’ resignations.
“This is my third mayor. The previous two I had no problems with. I could sit down and talk to them. When the new mayor came in, she tried to reassign our duties to the sheriff’s department and then it was becoming a micromanaging issue where she wanted to try to control the police department and she has no experience,” explained Bryant.
Mayor Beth Tripp is reportedly interviewing candidates for the new police chief, as the town prepares to address the police department’s situation in a town meeting, according to the report.