Newly confirmed investigations into Henderson’s apical constabulary leaders travel years of controversies, interior probes, lawsuits and enactment turnover astatine the city’s constabulary department.
The metropolis of Henderson confirmed Aug. 22 that it had asked authorities investigators look into allegations involving Police Chief Reggie Rader and Deputy Chief Matt Murnane.
The metropolis said Aug. 24 that Murnane has been connected permission since Aug. 18, but did not merchandise accusation astir the scope of the investigation. A Henderson constabulary spokesperson said that Rader was not connected leave.
The Nevada Department of Public Safety’s Office of Professional Responsibility is conducting the investigation, Mayor Michelle Romero said successful an emailed statement. Kim Yoko Smith, a spokeswoman for the Nevada State Police, which is wrong the Department of Public Safety, deferred inquiries regarding the probe to the metropolis of Henderson.
Here is simply a roundup of different investigations, controversies and lawsuits involving apical Henderson constabulary leaders successful caller years.
2010: Chambers’ departure
A 2010 postulation stop involving a motorist whom troopers suspected of impaired driving — but who was having a diabetic occurrence — ended up costing taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars successful settlements.
Adam Greene, 38 astatine the time, was driving to enactment 1 greeting erstwhile helium was pulled implicit by Nevada Highway Patrol troopers connected suspicion of impaired driving. Then-Henderson constabulary Sgt. Brett Seekatz responded to assistance the troopers and kicked Greene 5 times successful the caput and yelled astatine him to halt resisting, according to erstwhile Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.
An interior affairs probe sustained an unnecessary-force allegation against Seekatz, who was promoted to lieutenant successful 2016. Other allegations of misconduct were reported against Seekatz, but Seekatz was neither fired nor demoted, and helium was not charged with a transgression successful the Greene case. His actions resulted successful astir $300,000 successful taxpayer-funded settlements, according to a 2021 Review-Journal report.
Although Seekatz kept his job, metropolis leaders asked then-Police Chief Jutta Chambers to resign successful 2012, citing her handling of the beating. Chambers retired and her successor, Patrick Moers, held the presumption until 2017.
2017: Moers out
After the metropolis announced an probe into then-Police Chief Patrick Moers and his ties to the department’s fundraising group, the Friends of the Henderson Police Department Foundation, then-Deputy Chief Todd Peters was named the city’s acting constabulary main successful May 2017.
The probe came aft ex-Mayor Debra March saw a mailer from the instauration sent to section businesses showing Moers’ photograph and an representation of a Henderson constabulary badge. March had said astir the clip of Peters’ promotion she was concerned astir the grade of separation betwixt the instauration and the department. At slightest 2 members of the foundation’s advisory committee who besides owned backstage businesses had contracts with the city.
The metropolis announced successful June 2017 that Moers and then-Deputy Chief Bobby Long, different subordinate of the foundation’s board, had voluntarily separated from the department. The metropolis agreed to wage the 2 astir $400,000 nether separation agreements.
In 2018, the Review-Journal, citing sources that granted anonymity to support them from retribution, reported that a probe into sexual-harassment allegations against Moers had forced him retired and that metropolis leaders had concealed and misrepresented the quality of his separation.
2019: Watson fired
LaTesha Watson, a erstwhile lawman main of the Arlington Police Department successful Texas, replaced Peters arsenic constabulary main successful September 2018. The metropolis asked her to resign successful March 2019. It fired her the pursuing period aft she declined to motion a separation agreement.
Two Henderson constabulary unions filed complaints against Watson with the Local Government Employee-Management Relations Board, alleging that Watson and then-Deputy Chief Thedrick Andres had tried to interruption up the labour groups. An autarkic researcher concluded that Watson disregarded her supervisor’s orders and contributed to mistrust and part among employees.
Watson sued the metropolis successful September 2020, alleging she faced radical and sex discrimination. U.S. District Judge Cristina Silva ruled successful Henderson’s favour successful March 2025, and Watson appealed to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, according to online tribunal records. The lawsuit is ongoing.
2023: Andres retires
Andres replaced Watson arsenic the city’s acting constabulary main and held the station until retiring successful 2023. He was sworn successful arsenic the main successful 2019.
Police unions presented a ballot of nary assurance successful Andres during a November 2022 City Council meeting. The Henderson Police Officers and Henderson Police Supervisors associations announced that more than 95 percent of their members voted nary confidence successful the chief. The unions said Andres cultivated a hostile enactment situation and discriminated against officers based connected sex and sexuality.
March, who was politician astatine the time, expressed enactment for Andres astatine that 2022 meeting. In an interrogation with the Review-Journal, Andres said helium was arrogant of his work.
Two months later, Andres announced successful an interior memo helium was retiring to beryllium person with family. Andres is present the main of the Cibolo Police Department successful Texas, according to that city’s website.
2025: Chadwick fired
Hollie Chadwick followed Andres arsenic Henderson constabulary Chief and held the presumption until being fired successful March 2025. Chadwick is running for mayor and was replaced by Rader, who became main successful July 2025.
Review-Journal reporting recovered Chadwick successful 2023 had cleared the disciplinary grounds of a police detective accused of utilizing a radical slur. In 2024, Chadwick besides reversed recommendations to occurrence officers who were recovered by an interior probe to person conspired to screen up a suspected DUI clang involving an off-duty officer, according to metropolis records.
Chadwick has denied wrongdoing and said she would screen up a DUI. She said she stands by the decisions she made. She told the Review-Journal successful July 2025 the interior affairs cases involving those officers had been near pending by Andres’ medication and that interior affairs probes were taking excessively long.
“That becomes a small egregious, erstwhile you person employees disconnected enactment for that magnitude of time,” Chadwick told the Review-Journal past July. “It was my occupation to work each the facts, perceive to everything presented to maine successful a predisciplinary hearing, and marque the determination I made. And I basal by that decision.”
Several of the officers progressive successful the alleged cover-up have sued the city alleging their suspensions were the effect of favoritism and retaliation.
When Chadwick was fired, City Manager Stephanie Garcia-Vause said successful a connection that her and Chadwick’s “leadership styles were not aligned,” and that she had mislaid assurance successful Chadwick’s quality to perpetrate to shaping a “culture of collaboration and continuous improvement” astatine the constabulary department.
Contact Casey Harrison astatine charrison@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Casey_Harrison1 connected X.
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