The entire four person Geary, Oklahoma Police Department resigned Thursday with no official explanation. Courtesy of Greary PD/Facebook)
Nov. 3 (UPI) — The 1,000 residents of the town of Geary, about 50 miles northwest of Oklahoma City are left wondering who to call in an emergency following the resignation of the town’s entire four-person police department and two city council members.
Neither the officers nor the council members gave any explanation for their resignations.
Former Police Chief Alicia Ford did not provide specific reasons for the Thursday resignations, but said in a social media post that the decision was difficult.
The department made the announcement on its Facebook page.
“It is with great sadness that I and the rest of the Geary police officers will no longer be serving this community,” she wrote, “but it was the right decision for me and the other officers,” according to local media reports.
“We don’t have much of a city anymore,” resident Sonja Luquette told Oklahoma City TV-station KOCO-TV. “Ever since I’ve lived here it’s been one drama after another and it worries me for this town like we should be building up, not falling down,” she continued.
“I’m not happy by any means,” an anonymous resident told Fox affiliate KOKH-TV.” A city without its police force is a danger to the citizens of the town.”
Citing problems within the four-person department, Geary hired a consultant, JJ Stitt, to investigate.
Stitt, who says on his website that he has worked in law enforcement for 27 years, confirmed to KOKH that he was initially hired as a consultant, but was suddenly brought on to lead the department.
“It was the other night that I was given the information that, ‘Hey. We may have a problem at the police department. We’re going to need somebody to step up. Is it a possibility for you?’ I was hesitant at first,” he told the outlet.
There has not been an official reason given for the resignations, and Stitt said he was “not fully aware” of the reasons.
The city, in a statement, sought to reassure residents that their public safety needs are being met, thanked the former chief and officers while wishing them well and said an interim police chief has been chosen and that the Blaine County and Canadian County sheriffs’ offices will assist in patrolling the town.
“We would like to let our citizens know we are conducting business as usual,” according to the statement. “If you have an emergency, please contact 911 like you normally would and an officer will be dispatched to assist you,” the statement said.
The Geary City Council has four seats, and one seat is currently vacant. The two resignations left just one council member, Sandra Cleveland, remaining. She could not be reached for comment on Sunday.
The Geary resignations were the second to hit rural Oklahoma recently. Just days before the resignations in Geary, four of the five deputies at the Grant County Sheriff’s Office, another small law enforcement office in Oklahoma about 115 miles north of Geary, also resigned without explanation.