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The Sunday Gazette Mail
Clendenin hires 'secret' officer
Sunday November 24, 2002
By Christopher Tritto
In an effort to combat an increasing drug problem, Clendenin
Police Chief D.A. Crowder has added a military man with
counter-drug experience to his force.
Crowder and Mayor Kenneth Payne hired Sgt. James Wilson, 29,
a full-time West Virginia Army National Guardsman with the
Guard's Drug Demand Reduction unit. Wilson has been
conducting drug reconnaissance and surveillance as a part-time
police officer.
Crowder said Saturday he could not reveal the man's name
because of his "top secret" clearance status with the military.
Wilson provided his name himself when he returned a call from
the Gazette. He said he is a member of Bravo Company 1st of the
150th, an infantry platoon based at the Dunbar Armory. He spent
five years on active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, about two
years on active duty with the Army and has been a Guardsman
since 1996, he said.
He confirmed his top-secret clearance status, and said he has been
trained in the military's sniper and reconnaissance schools.
Wilson lives in Kanawha County, but not in Clendenin, he said.
He declined to provide his town of residence.
"I've known the chief for a while," Wilson said when asked how
he became part of the police force.
Secrecy surrounding Wilson's identity and role caused a stir
among some Clendenin residents when Crowder introduced him at
the town council's Nov. 11 meeting.
When Crowder called out to him, Wilson entered the room
wearing full camouflage military fatigues, camouflage paint on his
face and carrying a scoped assault rifle.
"If there were any kids in there, he would have scared the hell out
of them," said Henry T. Shafer, editor of the Clendenin Herald
newspaper. "I thought I had seen just about everything, but this
was bizarre. He said "I've seen you; have you seen me?'"
The officer was brought to the town council meeting to make a
presentation on his work in the Army's drug unit, Crowder said.
"I think everyone else was pleased with the presentation to see
what the Clendenin Police Department is doing to rid the town of
drugs," Crowder said. "I don't see what the problem was. What's
the big deal?"
Crowder said Wilson works undercover to conduct drug
reconnaissance. Wilson's face was covered and his name was kept
secret when the chief introduced him in order to conceal his
identity, Crowder said.
"I guess we're supposed to go tell the drug dealers and say, 'Hey,
here we are'?" Crowder asked. "That's not how it works. If
someone's undercover, you don't know where they are."
"Because of his work with the Army, he has special orders,"
Crowder said. "His name and picture can't be printed in the
paper."
The chief said Saturday he did not know where Wilson is
stationed, what specific unit he belongs to or who his commanding
officer is.
"The military issues are above and beyond me," he said.
Wilson provided many of the details and said his commanding
officer is aware of his work with the Clendenin police.
"There are plenty of Guardsmen on police departments all across
West Virginia," Wilson said. "In no way does my connection with
the Guard affect my job with the police. But I have a lot of
military training that benefits them in fighting the town's drug
problem."
Crowder said he hired Wilson about two months ago to work
about two shifts a week doing surveillance and drug
reconnaissance for the Clendenin Police Department. Payne
approved the hire, Crowder said.
Payne could not be reached for comment.
Wilson has spent time wearing his camouflage fatigues and face
paint in the woods while taking photographs and video surveillance
of houses with suspected methamphetamine labs, Wilson said. He
has also done both plainclothes and uniformed police work, he
said. He supplements his job with the Guard by working 14 to 15
hours each weekend with the police, he said.
Wilson uses photographic equipment and binoculars, but does not
carry his assault rifle on his police reconnaissance missions, he
said.
"The rifle and camouflage at my introduction were just to show
the full capabilities the police department had," Wilson said. "I'm
not some lone bandit in the woods. I don't want anyone to get the
wrong idea."
At the town council meeting, Wilson told members what kind of
information he had gathered related to drug investigations with the
police and explained he had not been seen because he had been on
surveillance, he said.
The police department has had six full-time officers on patrol since
May, Crowder said. Now, this seventh man is helping them
enforce drug laws.
"The town of Clendenin has had a drug problem because we
didn't have an adequate police service," Crowder said. "Now
people feel safe walking the streets again. We've had several drug
warrants, searches and arrests at labs making methamphetamine
and people selling marijuana. And with the increase in manpower,
vandalism is now almost nonexistent."
Shafer said the police activity is unreasonable.
"We've got a police force that's out of this world," Shafer said.
"They're chasing people out of town and giving tickets out like
wild. They've got six or seven police officers for a town of 1,150
people. And we're a bankrupt community."
Payne revealed last week that the town owed the Internal Revenue
Service and state tax division a combined total of about $70,000 in
unpaid taxes from the past three years. The town works with
about $192,000 in its annual budget and currently has about
$35,000 in the bank, Payne told county commissioners Nov. 14.
Commissioners sent a letter Wednesday to Payne and town
attorney Garth Atkins and requested they attend Monday's
commission meeting to discuss Clendenin's financial situation.
An initial inquiry by commission staff members found "quite
often, checks noted in the minutes as being for a certain payee, for
a certain amount, were not supported by the canceled checks
themselves," the letter from Commissioner Kent Carper states.
"This is in addition to missing financial records, missing fine-box
keys, and the lack of proper reporting to state and federal
agencies."
Atkins could not be reached for comment.
At the last town council meeting, when the police officer was
introduced, Payne also told town council members that Clendenin
is facing serious financial problems.
Former town Recorder Barbara L. Davis resigned at the meeting.
She said her decision was based on health issues.
Davis was apparently responsible for writing the checks to pay the
now-delinquent taxes. Payne, who became mayor four months
ago, said Davis did not pay the bills, indicated she had and never
told council members about the delinquencies.
Payne met with IRS agents a couple of weeks ago and has paid
part of the federal tax bill. He was trying to meet with state tax
officials earlier this week.
County prosecutor Mike Clifford's office has been notified of the
problem and may conduct an investigation.
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