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Chief Troy Finner abruptly retired Wednesday from the Houston Police Department in a late-night resignation given to Mayor John Whitmire amid an ongoing probe into how the department has suspended thousands of criminal investigations.
At issue is an internal department computer code that police used in 264,000 cases to suspend investigations due to a lack of personnel. The crimes included roughly 4,000 sexual assault cases.
Whitmire said Finner’s decision to retire ultimately was the chief’s, but it was made in “dialogue” with the mayor.
Finner’s sudden departure came after local media obtained an email that showed Finner had been aware of that code as early as 2018. Finner had previously said he learned of the code in 2021.
In a late-night email to the police department, Whitmire named Assistant Police Chief Larry Satterwhite as acting chief of police, saying he had full confidence in Satterwhite’s abilities to “lead and uphold the high standards of our department.”
“I have accepted the retirement of Troy Finner as chief of police, and have appointed Larry Satterwhite acting chief of police, effective 10:31 p.m. tonight,” Whitmire wrote in the email.
“I ask everyone to extend their full cooperation and support to Acting Chief Satterwhite during this transition period,” Whitmire added.
Whitmire repeatedly had voiced support for Finner and, in fact, began his City Hall tenure with an overnight ridealong with the chief moments after being sworn in at midnight on Jan. 1. His public support continued throughout months of headlines about the suspended cases, even as he set up an independent committee to conduct a review of those cases and the police department’s actions.
He also projected confidence in Finner’s acting replacement, Satterwhite, whom he said he has known for years.
“He was actually the acting chief when Chief Finner would leave town, so I know the department and Houstonians are in good keeping with Chief Satterwhite. I want to thank Chief Finner for his many years of public service,” Whitmire said.
Later in the meeting, Whitmire said the department being forced to expend resources on old cases at the same time that new crimes flared played a role in the chief’s departure.
“The current investigations and suspended cases have become such a distraction that I was convinced that the department had lost some of its focus to address the hot spots, response times, and I could go through a list of things that I think were being interrupted because of the time spent and new revelations on those disruptions,” Whitmire said.
Council members laud Finner
Many council members praised Finner at Wednesday’s meeting, noting that he was in charge of the department during the pandemic. Mayor Pro Tem Martha Castex-Tatum described the veteran cop as a “consummate professional.”
“Quite frankly, I have got mixed emotions about it all,” she said. “Chief Finner, in my opinion, has operated with the highest level of integrity. For 34 years he served HPD, and I did not want his 34 years of dedicated service to not be recognized by this council, by this city.”
Several council members also said they believed Finner when he said he did not recall receiving the 2018 email referencing suspended cases. District D Council Member Carolyn Evans-Shabazz noted that even in that 2018 email thread, Finner had described the suspension of a case as “unacceptable.”
“I want to challenge anyone anywhere that can remember one email back in 2018,” she said. “But what was consistent here was the fact that he said it was unacceptable.”
Whitmire said he had not made a decision about the department’s next permanent chief.
“I’m not ruling out internal or external chiefs,” he said.
In response to questions from news media, Whitmire said he could not detail a timeline for picking a new chief. However, he said that he would not appoint a search or advisory committee, which he said often were used largely “for show.”
Investigation reopened
One major concern for Whitmire was the fact that an investigation that had seemed to be on the verge of wrapping up instead was reopened last week, thanks to the revelation that the veracity of a letter from a top-ranking HPD officer that kicked off the probe had been brought into question.
The revelation of the 2018 email was “the final straw,” Whitmire said Wednesday. The reopened investigation threatened to keep hanging over the department, he said.
“The morale was being impacted. I talked to officers at every level,” he said.
This is a developing story; check back for details.
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