“It was an oversight on my part,” explains Freestone County Sheriff Jeremy Shipley to County Commissioners in regard to Jail Administrator Sheena Wimberly being placed on leave following a recent Human Resources assessment performed by Texas Association of Counties (TAC) on Jeannie Keeney, the new County Treasurer.
“TCOLE said I could designate anyone as jail administrator. She didn’t work in the jail, so I didn’t realize she needed a jailer’s license.” TECOLE is the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement; the statewide peace officer regulating agency.
Mrs. Wimberly has been serving as Jail Administrator since December 3, 2017. Previously, she served as Custodian of Records for the County. She is the third Jail Administrator to serve under Sheriff Shipley.
The County has issued Mrs. Wimberly one hundred and twenty-three hours of comp time, which she is using for her leave. During this time she will be obtaining her jailer’s license in order to return to work as soon as possible.
“I’ve contacted the Jail Commission,” says Sheriff Shipley. “They are aware we are working to get this fixed.”
When payroll for County employees came up for approval, Commissioners Clyde Ridge and Craig Oakes voted against approving because they do not feel the County should be paying Mrs. Wimberly comp hours at the Jail Administrator pay rate.
“We’ve been paying someone in that position that’s not qualified,” says Ridge. “And now we’re going to keep paying them?”
As the payroll being brought for approval was for hours previously worked, Judge Linda Grant broke the tie to approve the payment.
Commissioners may address the comp hour pay at a future meeting.
