Police Department Applicants Interviewed

Three applicants to fill vacancies in the Smithville Police Department were interviewed Tuesday afternoon at city hall by Mayor Taft Hendrixson, Vice Mayor/Alderman Steve White, and Smithville Police Department Officer in Charge, Steven Leffew.
Randy King, Joey Jones, and Steve Cowan have expressed an interest in being hired by the city as a police officer.
King, originally from Grundy County, now lives in Warren County and is currently out of law enforcement, working for a company in Jasper. He began his law enforcement career in Tracy City, where he became certified. For financial reasons, King left law enforcement and went into business for himself, before taking a job in Jasper. King was among the top ten in his class when he completed the Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy.
Jones, a resident of White County, is also a certified officer and has worked for thirteen years for the White County Sheriff’s Department.
Cowan, who lives at Brush Creek, is a certified officer and is currently employed as a security officer for UMC Medical Center in Lebanon. He formerly worked for over 18 years in security at Tennessee State University, and spent a year and a half working for the Smith County Sheriff’s Department, before becoming employed at UMC.
Mayor Hendrixson says a decision on hiring some new officers could come soon and would have to be approved by the aldermen at the next regular meeting.
Meanwhile, Mayor Hendrixson says the police department is planning to change the working schedule of it’s officers to twelve hour shifts.