RRISD police chief leaves, says district ‘delayed’ investigations
ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — Round Rock ISD Chief of Police Dennis Weiner said in a letter to the district’s superintendent that he was leaving due to “delayed” investigations, including an alleged student sexual assault that happened last month.
In his letter to the RRISD superintendent, Weiner began with the latest investigation involving a 5-year-old who was allegedly sexually assaulted on one of the district’s school buses on April 12. He said that while the bus driver witnessed the assault, they did not report it to police.
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Weiner said campus leadership reviewed the video, but police were still not notified. He said due to police not knowing about the incident, the victim was “subjected to additional trauma” by having to ride the bus to school on Monday morning.
A statement from the district said the letter “inaccurately represents personnel matters and an incident involving minors.” The district added that all incidents involving students have been addressed with applicable law and district policy.
In a message to RRISD staff, the district said Interim Chief Lauren Griffith, who has worked in the department since 2020, began as police chief May 14. The date that Weiner left the position was not shared.
Weiner said after the investigation, it was revealed that the victim and one other student had been previously assaulted on the bus route by the same person, who was identified as an older student in the letter.
Weiner said the district failed to notify and inform the police, which directly impacted the department’s ability to protect student victims. Weiner said he contacted the Texas Attorney General’s Office as a request to investigate this most recent case, as well as the practices and actions of district leadership.
RRISD board officers said in a statement that trustees were briefed about the letter from Weiner in a closed session at the May 16 board meeting.
“Mr. Weiner’s letter referred to a serious incident involving children that is under current investigation and to other personnel matters related to Mr. Weiner’s employment with the district,” a statement said.
The letter from board officers said they were “deeply disappointed” in the actions of two board members who released the unredacted letter from Weiner “that could potentially compromise the privacy of minor children and related investigations.”
A joint statement from board members Danielle Weston and Mary Bone said both of their reactions were “shock and concern for the students, families and staff in our schools.”
“As parents ourselves, we know that parents have a right to know what is going on in their schools and to make their own decisions on how to best protect their children. They can only do this if they are fully aware of what is going on,” the statement from Bone and Weston said.
The board members’ statement said Weston insisted in writing to board president Amber Feller Landrum asking that she “immediately” call a special meeting to “address accusations in the letter.”
History of delayed reporting of crimes
Weiner continued in the letter by saying that since he joined the district, he “experienced numerous practices of non-reporting and delayed report of crimes.”
He said the district also questioned the police department’s “viability of the police radio system as it relates to interoperability.”
Wiener said the district directive interfered with his duty to “provide a public safety radio capability” to the RRISD police department and that it was a “potential Texas Penal Code violation.” He stated in the letter that it was “a crime for any person including school administrators to interfere with school district peace officers while they are performing their duties or lawfully exercising their authority.”
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