State agency confirms investigation of Round Rock ISD police leadership
According to Weiner, the decision was made last week. It came months after a third-party investigator concluded in a report his former department was “toxic” and “hostile.” KXAN also obtained records showing the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement investigated RRISD's police leadership in 2023 and found evidence of lapses in licensing.
ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — Dennis Weiner, the former police chief for the Round Rock Independent School District, confirmed on Monday that the district placed him on administrative leave until the end of his contract.
According to Weiner, the decision was made last week. It came months after a third-party investigator concluded in a report his former department was “toxic” and “hostile.” KXAN also obtained records showing the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement investigated RRISD's police leadership in 2023 and found evidence of lapses in licensing.
Last week, school board Trustees Mary Bone and Danielle Weston shared an April 30 letter Weiner wrote to the district's superintendent on Facebook. The letter alleges that some district officials failed to report or delayed reporting crimes to the school police department.
In the letter, Weiner alleged the district failed to report a sexual assault in April that occurred on a school bus and said he requested that the Texas Office of Attorney General investigate "the practices and actions of district leadership as they relate to police matters."
A district statement said the content of Weiner’s letter “inaccurately represents personnel matters and an incident involving minors.” RRISD Board President Amber Feller Landrum told KXAN on Monday that Weiner’s assertion that a bus driver saw the assault is false.
The district added that all incidents involving students have been addressed with applicable law and district policy. The Attorney General has not yet responded to KXAN’s request for comment.
The department has been subject to multiple internal and external investigations for months.
State and third-party investigation
The Texas Commission on Law Enforcement investigated Weiner and Assistant Chief of Police Rose White, and the agency detailed its findings in a June 2023 investigation summary obtained by KXAN. White and Weiner came from the Palm Beach County School District's police department before being hired with Round Rock ISD.
According to TCOLE records, Weiner completed and passed his TCOLE licensing on March 21, 2023, and White did the same on April 18, 2023.
However, according to the TCOLE investigation summary, both Weiner and White had “not completed the proper BCF (background confirmation form) process” or L1 forms, which are needed for appointment to RRISD.
Weiner said he did receive a letter of warning from TCOLE for the L1 issue, but said he followed the process the district's human resources and police department had in place when he was hired.
"The process was corrected immediately when TCOLE informed me of the issue during the investigation that the process was not being followed. I am certified in [New York], [Florida], and [Texas] and have never been investigated by the state licensing agency until I was hired by RRISD," Weiner said in a statement to KXAN.
TCOLE also investigated at least one stop White made in December 2022.
“Evidence shows that White did in fact represent herself as a law enforcement official prior to receiving her Texas Peace Officer’s license when she conducted an investigative subject stop, detaining that subject, and requesting CJIS information via radio on December 12, 2022,” according to TCOLE’s investigation summary.
KXAN obtained one event report for a call handled by White on Dec. 12, 2022. The report shows the stop happened at Round Rock High School at about 1:30 p.m. It does not show any arrest was made, and the call disposition is labeled as “warn.”
TCOLE submitted White’s case to the Williamson County District Attorney’s Office, which declined it on Oct. 31, 2023. TCOLE said it closed the case in January 2024.
Aside from the TCOLE investigation, district officials said Round Rock ISD paid third-party investigator Patricia Lineras $15,000 to conduct two formal investigations in October 2023. The first investigation was into a complaint filed against Weiner and another into the culture and climate of the department.
KXAN initially asked the district if it was investigating its police department in October 2023. The district then denied an investigation was happening, but the investigative report obtained by KXAN via open records request shows both were already underway.
“I apologize that you were given incorrect information regarding the internal investigation. The investigations were HR-related and conducted by an outside investigator,” an RRISD official told KXAN in an email.
According to the report, the third-party investigator interviewed 37 current social workers, police officers, sergeants, the assistant chief, and support staff in the police department. Both investigations were completed by Oct. 24.
Investigators say they observed “a lack of professional communication by the chief,” favoritism, and a failure to follow district procedures.
“There is a lack of professional communications by the Chief (inappropriate comments made to and about police officers and sergeants,” the report stated.
"It was concerning that in a department entrusted with the safety and security of our district, they were categorizing it as chaotic and disorganized," Landrum said. "Once those concerns came to light, the administration addressed them as a systemic issue of how to make changes."
The report, completed in October 2023, also expresses concerns with the district’s radio and dispatch office: "… There is a fear that the new dispatch system would not be able to handle severe security issues quickly.”
In response, district officials told KXAN, “The radios are a work in progress.” However, the district has not provided additional information on the nature of the problem with the dispatch and radio system or clarified whether the issue is ongoing.