Small Town Fires Its Entire Police Force

A West Virginia town abruptly went cop-free this week, and the fallout is messy. Barrackville's two remaining police officers say they were sidelined Tuesday after raising alarms about a break-in at the department's evidence room. Former Sgt. Hunt told 12 News he discovered the breach, then met with the mayor and town council—who had previously talked about wanting to inventory the department without officers present. "Effective immediately, the entire Barrackville Police Department has been relieved of duty by the Mayor and City Council," said a post on the department's Facebook page.

Hunt says a council member admitted taking a set of police keys, and that when he suggested town officials were behind the break-in, he and the town's other officer were placed on inactive status and the clerk resigned. The firings follow last week's resignation of Police Chief Zachary Freeburn amid complaints of council overreach and lack of transparency. He provided a letter to 12 News airing his reasons for stepping down. Town officials haven't commented; the county sheriff says his office will handle calls in Barrackville.