Smith County Detention Officer Arrested
Posted/updated on: March 9, 2014 at 4:11 pm
TYLER At a news conference Friday afternoon, Smith County Sheriff Larry Smith announced that Keenon Olison, a detention officer-jailer at the countys Low Risk Jail facility, had been arrested Friday morning and terminated as a Sheriff’s Office employee. Olison is charged with multiple counts relating to possessing a controlled substance in a detention facility with intent to deliver that controlled substance to an inmate as well as delivery of contraband to inmates. Olison was originally hired at the Sheriffs Office on May 20, 2012. Approximately six weeks ago, information was received by the Special Services Unit of the Sheriffs Office that a detention officer was smuggling contraband and controlled substances into the Smith County Jail Low Risk Facility.
Sheriff Smith said that he placed Olison under surveillance several weeks ago after the information was received by the Special Services Unit indicating Olison was allegedly responsible for providing illegal contraband and controlled substances within the Low-Risk Detention Facility. The Sheriffs Office has been conducting this investigation in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Smith County District Attorneys Office.
Upon Olisons arrest inside the Low Risk Facility, he was interviewed at the Smith County Sheriffs Office. Upon completion of the interview, Olison was due to be processed into the Smith County Jail and subsequently transported to an undisclosed detention facility. Following Olisons arrest, multiple Smith County Sheriff’s Office personnel conducted a search of the inmate housing of the Low and Medium Risk Facility, searching each cell and each inmate. Any inmate found to be in possession of contraband or controlled substances will face additional charges, according to officials.
When I ran for this office, I said that the Smith County Sheriff’s Office would clean its own house and that each employee will be held to a higher standard than the general public, and thats exactly what we continue to do as we have exhibited today, said Sheriff Smith. This is the third employee of the Smith County Sheriffs Office that we have arrested since I took office on January 1, 2013. These type of events did not begin on January 1, 2013.
Smith continued, “I will not simply transfer a problem employee who is suspected of something of this nature, nor will I simply terminate the employee. What we as a law enforcement agency will do is to tirelessly and aggressively investigate actions such as these for the purpose of perfecting a criminal case on that employee and recommend they be prosecuted to the extent that the criminal statutes allow. The first was a jailer charged with assault. We arrested him just days after I took office. The second was Kimbrick Jones, who was arrested last July for selling narcotics, and hes now incarcerated in the United States Bureau of Prisons. I told every one of my employees when I was sworn in that they were all now being held to a higher standard, and I meant that.
Smith also said, An additional promise that I made was transparency. I said that I would keep an open line of communication with the news media and the public, whether it was good news or bad news. This Sheriffs Office belongs to the people of Smith County and they deserve to know exactly whats going on. Smith said that Olison had disciplinary actions in his personnel file related to not following protocol and direction, but nothing criminal until now.
