A police chief has taken to Facebook and Twitter to name and shame officers guilty of serious misconduct - telling followers he had 'terminated' them.  Dallas Police Chief David O. Brown detailed the crimes staff were guilty of - including shooting an unarmed suspect, domestic violence and drunken behaviour - and what punishments had been handed down.  He tweeted the results of disciplinary inquiries to his more than 5,500 Twitter followers in a series of 14 posts. Chief Brown said that the openness was an attempt to improve public faith in his police force. He said: 'Transparency motivated us to engage the public on social media'.  Far more detailed accounts of the offenses his officers were found guilty of were laid out on the police department's Facebook page.

The tactic of the police chief, which was discovered by news site Vocativ.com, has won widespread praise from social media users.  One, who called herself Grim AkaStatik, commented: 'Thank you for exposing the dirty cops that exist today. They are not above the law. These offenses are harmful to others... Keep this up.'  But some critics of the social media naming and shaming have said the postings are made before each of the disciplined officers and staff have had a chance to appeal their punishments.

Rob Ramcharan said: 'Getting rid of the thugs and slackers on the force is a good idea, as long as it isn't just lighting the end of a very long fuse that will result in an arbitration panel reinstating the disgraced officers with hundreds of thousands of dollars in back pay, or putting them on permanent disability for the post traumatic stress they suffered as a result of being fired. 'Maybe it's time to look at the hiring process and what goes on at the police academy.'

The public can visit the Facebook page entitled 'Chief David O. Brown Disciplines Employees', and read about the misdemeanors of officers.  The posting notes that Senior Corporal Amy Wilburn was sacked after she was found to have violated the department's policy on the use of deadly force. On December 9, 2013, she had helped stop a car stolen by armed robbers who had fired shots at the owner of the vehicle. According to the account posted on Facebook: 'While the vehicle was moving slowly, the driver jumped out and began running and the passenger remained inside the vehicle. 'The other officers began to pursue the driver while Senior Corporal Wilburn ran toward the vehicle with her weapon still holstered. 

'As Senior Corporal Wilburn opened the driver’s door, she appeared surprised at the sight of the suspect sitting in the passenger seat and almost immediately drew her weapon and fired once, striking the suspect once in the side. 'The Internal Affairs investigation concluded that Senior Corporal Wilburn violated the Department’s Use of Deadly Force policy when she fired upon an unarmed person without fear or justification.'

911 dispatcher Moises Limon was fired after being caught drink driving. Senior Corporal Frank Della, who had been with the force since 1994, was fired after getting into a drunken altercation after attending a concert while off-duty.  Senior Corporal James Reynolds, was demoted after he failed to go to the assistance of a colleague who was calling for urgent help with an aggressive prisoner.

Senior Corporal William Wesley, was sacked for punching his girlfriend in the head. He was arrested for Family Violence Assault, Class A Misdemeanor. 'An Internal Affairs investigation concluded that Senior Corporal Wesley engaged in adverse conduct when he was involved in a domestic disturbance which resulted in a police response.

Sergeant Rafael Rodriguez, fired for threatening his estranged wife at her home with a handgun. The police department's Facebook account said: 'An Internal Affairs investigation concluded that Sergeant Rodriguez engaged in adverse conduct when he was involved in a disturbance which resulted in a police response and subsequent arrest for Deadly Conduct.  'The investigation also concluded that Sergeant Rodriguez was armed with a weapon which he was not qualified to carry.'

To view the tweets, go to the Original Article