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Lynn County reviews sick‑time pay after TCOLE error; commissioners table decision
Summary
A TCOLE audit that originally listed an arrest as a Class A misdemeanor but was later corrected to Class B led to a reinstated deputy and a dispute over restoring 47.52 hours of paid sick leave; commissioners discussed administrative‑leave policy and potential repayment, then tabled the item for a future agenda.
County and Sheriff's Office officials discussed the personnel consequences of a Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) audit during the March 23 meeting of the Lynn County Commissioners Court.
Sheriff's Office staff reported that TCOLE discovered a prior arrest in an employee’s record was recorded incorrectly by the Department of Public Safety as a Class A misdemeanor when it should have been a Class B; that error temporarily made the employee ineligible for employment under TCOLE rules. Sheriff Wanda Mason and Lieutenant/administrator Chris Hennsley described how the employee was placed on administrative leave, submitted a resignation when told it could take three to six months to clear, and then was reinstated after TCOLE corrected the record and rescinded the separation.
The court discussed whether to restore 47.52 hours of sick time that had been paid out after the resignation. Amy Schuknecht explained payroll timing: because the audit occurred mid‑pay period, sick time was used and the employee was paid out accrued leave; she reported that 41.52 hours equals $1,126.22. Sheriff Mason said TCOLE sent documentation rescinding the separation and that the documentation would be placed in the employee's personnel file. Commissioners questioned whether the county should repay that sick leave, require the employee to reimburse the county, or use administrative leave in similar future cases.
Commissioner Tate Gass suggested that if the employee wanted the hours back, the employee could purchase (repay) them; Judge Braddock said he agreed that repayment would be the fairest approach if the county had already paid out the time. Sheriff Mason and county staff discussed updating policy so the sheriff's office could use administrative leave in similar circumstances to avoid putting employees in a position of resigning. The court ultimately voted to table the agenda item for a future meeting, after a motion by Commissioner Gass and a second by Commissioner Durham.
Authorities and documentation presented in the discussion included county payroll calculations and a letter from TCOLE confirming the correction and reinstatement; the court did not adopt a final remedy at the March 23 session.
