FARMERS BRANCH -- After a CBS 11 News exclusive, the Farmers Branch Police Chief has been suspended without pay for ten days, and will be required to go into counseling.

The action comes after the chief admitted to making insensitive and inappropriate remarks regarding a Vietnamese police recruit.

In his 32 years with the City of Farmers Branch, 15 as chief, Jimmy Fawcett has had a spotless record. But it now has the stain of an "unpaid suspension" and "mandatory counseling".

An early December comment offended some of his own officers so bad, that they filed an official complaint.

They say Fawcett was referring to a Vietnamese police recruit and said, "As long as I'm chief, we won't have any gooks working in Farmers Branch."

“To me it sends a message to all the officers and everybody else that it's okay to say something like that,” said Paul Thai, Asian Law Enforcement Association.

Farmers Branch has never had an Asian police officer. And while Fawcett doesn't confirm that he made the exact statement alleged, he does admit to making inappropriate and insensitive comments about individuals of Vietnamese heritage. And that's upset some in the Asian community.

Asian activist Jennifer Nguyen says the comments are taking a toll. "I heard a lot of negative feedback, 'Well they don’t want us here. Well I will have to move my business and move my children away from Farmer's Branch. They don't want us here, I don't want to do business with them.'" Nguyen says Fawcett owes Asians a public apology.

The chief has declined to comment publicly for this story. But his defenders point out that Chief Fawcett’s wife of 35 years is Japanese and his children are Japanese/American proving that his is sensitive to the Asian community.

Chief Fawcett is also a Vietnam vet who serves as a vice president of the International Chiefs of Police, a prestigious group that represents standards of policing world wide.

Chief's slur tarnishes residents' trust in police

By Esther Wu
©2006 The Dallas Morning News
January 12, 2006

Like many people, I was taught at an early age that police officers are our friends. Police help us when we are in trouble. These are people we can trust.

But Paul Thai says it is not as simple as that.

"You were taught to trust police," he said of most Americans. "[But] I learned to run and hide from people in uniform. Police are people who can hurt you or take away your family for no good reason."

Mr. Thai grew up in Cambodia's Killing Fields during the bloody reign of the Khmer Rouge.

"Many Southeast Asians share a distrust of law enforcement officers," said Mr. Thai, who immigrated to this country with his family at age 18 in 1981. "Many come from countries with corrupt government agencies. They learn to fear and distrust officials. Unfortunately, it stays with many of us even after coming to this country."

Mr. Thai and I met to discuss Farmers Branch Police Chief Jimmy Fawcett, who has been suspended for 10 days and is undergoing mandatory counseling for making inappropriate and insensitive comments about a police candidate of Vietnamese descent. The incident reportedly took place in December, and the chief was on paid leave from Dec. 16 through Jan. 4 before the suspension.

He is due back to work soon. But some folks, like Farmers Branch resident Tony Munoz, say he shouldn't come back at all.

Jennifer Nguyen, a member of the Vietnamese Media Association and a founder of the Vietnamese Community Center in Garland, demanded and got a public apology from City Manager Linda Groomer on Wednesday.

A lot of people are upset that a public official used a racial slur.

It is an insult - something you certainly wouldn't expect to hear from a city official with an unblemished record, much less someone married to a woman of Asian descent.

I wanted Mr. Thai's perspective. In 1986, he joined the Dallas Police Department, and today, he is the president of the Dallas Area Law Enforcement Association. He joined to help fellow refugees from Southeast Asia. Much of his career has been spent as a community liaison and recruiter working to persuade young Asian immigrants to work with the law - not against it.

"At this point, it doesn't matter what he did or did not exactly say," said Mr. Thai. "The sentiment is still out there. A lot of people have been hurt - on both sides.

"It has taken us years to convince these folks that the police are here to protect them. This is a real setback for us. Folks will now point to this man and say 'this is how they [non-Asians] really feel about us.'"

"It will take time for Asians to trust officers again - not just in Farmers Branch, but everywhere," Mr. Thai said.

In the official statement from City Hall, Ms. Groomer wrote: "We sincerely regret that this incident has occurred and the cloud that it has brought over the stellar reputation of the Farmers Branch Police Department and the entire city. It is not representative of our attitudes, practices or how we do business in the City of Farmers Branch. We apologize to the public, our residents and businesses, the community at large, to the applicants involved in this process, and to all the employees of the city for this regretful situation."

Mr. Munoz said it is not enough. He wants Chief Fawcett fired.

"There is no place for hatred and bigotry against another human ... especially in a police department," he said. "I am Latino, and that man could have easily replaced that racial slur directed at Asians to one directed at me."

He said he has been compelled to stand up for Asian friends, neighbors and fellow churchgoers. "I am ashamed that I have to face them and apologize for what that man said because he is not man enough to do it himself."

We've all said things we've regretted or not meant. Unfortunately, as a public official, Chief Fawcett's comments have serious ramifications. His words and his actions influence those who serve under him.

Last week, while driving late at night, I had a flat tire. My first instinct was to call police for help. I hate to admit it, but I hesitated for a split second.

Mr. Thai was right. This incident will have a deep impact on all of us.