.jpg)
Eagle Lake City Manager Tink Jackson announced an ongoing external evaluation of the police department as council members began a contentious discussion about police retention and community reputation, Tuesday, Jan. 13.
Online comments over Eagle Lake Police Department’s high turnover rate and low retention exploded in number after the posting of Eagle Lake PD Lt. Sterling Hubenak’s 13-page resignation letter, Sunday, Jan. 11. The letter contained numerous allegations of misconduct against Police Chief Donald Chaney and alleged that Jackson protected Chaney from investigation.
Jackson did not address Hubenak’s letter directly, but referenced comments made by council members in previous meetings. Jackson said Jesse Prado will conduct the evaluation “for causes related to retention issues.” Prado, who has worked with the city before, assists in investigation into high state level government officials and formerly served at the Austin Police Department for over 25 years.
“I informed the council that there are laws in place when it comes to investigating a police officer,” Jackson said. “Paramount is the need for a formal notarized complaint. Police officers have rights just like everyone else.”
Under Texas Government Code Chapter 614, a formal, signed complaint in writing must be filed to prompt a formal investigation of a law enforcement officer. Jackson said he has received no complaints.
“If an evaluation shows concerns or issues, then I can use that to myself to file a formal complaint and trigger a full investigation,” Jackson said.
Jackson attributed the low retention to low pay compared to larger agencies and a lack of competitive benefits. Jackson said many of the concerns were addressed with increased and improved benefits passed in the 2025-2026 budget. The council also approved a new take-home vehicle policy.
Councilmembers Amy Maxwell, Renee Cooper and Billy Sosa reported discussing the situation with community members who did not cite Jackson’s reasons. Cooper reported eight officers contacted her, Maxwell and Sosa and described a “a toxic work environment.” Maxwell said the complaints were about “leadership.”
“The reasoning behind the ones I’ve talked to that they’ve not done [a formal complaint] is because they’re afraid of retaliation,” Maxwell said. “… Everything is filed on people, and it follows them wherever they go. It’s not like they can hide and go to another agency.”
In an interview with the Citizen before city council, Jackson described the formal complaint process. In summary, complaints are logged by the city secretary into a tracking spreadsheet then sent to Jackson for review. Jackson said he will then assign the complaint to the department head concerning the complaint’s purview. If the complaint originates internally and concerns a department head, Jackson said he would assign the complaint to another department head or handle it himself. Jackson said complaints against him would be passed along to Mayor Tim Kelley.
Cooper said citizens have lost trust in Eagle Lake PD. She said the officers that emailed her said Kelley had refused to speak with them.
“The thing that I’m hearing from the community is there’s a disconnect between the police department and the community,” Cooper said. “…They don’t trust the police department. They don’t feel as though they’re friendly or anything.”
A few citizens attended the council meeting to ask questions and provide public comments. At the beginning of the meeting, Mike Houlihan urged the council to seek a third-party investigator and expressed his concerns over the allegations in Hubenak’s letter.
“The chief is an employee of Eagle Lake. The city manager is a paid employee of Eagle Lake. That means both these two people work for us,” Houlihan said. “As a citizen of Eagle Lake, I want to know, is our police department on the up and up? Are there any truth to the allegations that have been made?”
Hubenak’s letter to Chaney contained extensive allegations of retaliation, discriminatory hiring practices, verbal threats of violence and poor job performance against Police Chief Donald Chaney. Hubenak also highlighted his own progressive contributions to the department.
“Historical ly under my leadership, the agency has flourished and remained staffed when I have authority over Patrol, but when you step in and take my authority, is when all the issues return, morale leaves, employees leave, and the agency is in peril,” Hubenak wrote.
Hubenak alleged Chaney hired officers with records of former disciplinary act ions, said he could choose to ignore hiring policies, threatened to fire officers and more. Hubenak also alleged retaliation by Jackson.
“You and City Manager Jackson have also informed me that City Manager Jackson has been known to contact prospective employers and city managers of officers leaving Eagle Lake PD, and you have been known to contact agency administrators of those that have left Eagle lake PD to attempt to sabotage employment for those officers,” Hubenak wrote.
During city council, Kelley did not speak much during discussion on the topic and urged council members to focus on retention and not items on the agenda. He cautioned against believing informal complaints at face value.
“Don’t believe everything you hear,” Kelley said. “Don’t believe everything you see.”
The Citizen has not been able to reach Hubenak for comment. The Citizen encourages present and former officers and citizens to share their stories or ask questions in conversation with Area Reporter Allison Drinnon by emailing [email protected] or calling 979-732-2304.
