COHUTTA, GA - The political future of a small town, Georgia mayor from Whitfield County is being questioned after the mayor reportedly fired the town’s entire police force following criticism of his wife shared on social media by some of the police officers.
Earlier in May, the town of Cohutta’s mayor, Ron Shinnick, reportedly shut down the entire Cohutta Police Department and, by extension, relieved 10 employees and officers tasked with patrolling the town. On May 6, a sign was posted on the police department’s front door which read, “The PD has been dissolved, and all personnel have been terminated.”
According to reports, the timing of the department closure happened to coincide with levied criticisms of Mayor Shinnick’s wife, Pat Shinnick, who previously served as a town clerk. Pat was reportedly fired from her role as a town clerk after allegations surfaced of her contributing to a “hostile work environment,” but police officers reportedly voiced concerns that Pat was still effectively working in her former capacity and having access to privileged information related to the role.
Roughly a week after a press conference during which Mayor Shinnick and Police Chief Greg Fowler claimed “open dialogue and good-faith mediation” resolved the aforementioned concerns about Pat’s alleged access to information in the wake of her termination, the police department was disbanded by Mayor Shinnick.
In an unsurprising development, the Cohutta Town Council voted to reinstate the police department days after Mayor Shinnick upended it. The May 8 town council meeting was reportedly filled with “tensions” according to local reports, which also highlighted that Mayor Shinnick abruptly “left the meeting and did not intend on returning.”
Mayor Shinnick’s attempt at disbanding the police department reportedly fell outside the bounds of the town charter, which requires the mayor to notify the town council 30 days in advance of any planned employee termination. Additionally, the town mayor was also required to detail a clear reason for any employee termination, which, in the mass firing of the department, none was reportedly given.
Following the stunt believed to be motivated by a personal vendetta over criticisms lodged against his wife, there are mounting calls for Mayor Shinnick’s resignation.
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