HOUSTON, Texas – The recently elected Galveston County Sheriff is suing the state agency that licenses all peace officers in Texas.
Sheriff Jimmy Fullen filed a lawsuit in Galveston County to block the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement’s (TCOLE) attempts to suspend his license for 10 years.
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How did we get here?
In June 2024, TCOLE recommended revoking Fullen’s license, claiming he violated state rules requiring peace officers to list all disciplinary actions, lawsuits and prior arrests on their personal history statements. TCOLE cited omissions on personal history statements filed with two departments.
“Respondent omitted, failed to disclose, or provided false or untruthful information related to job experience, having been disciplined at work, having been fired or asked to resign from a place of employment, having been accused of discrimination, having been the subject of a written complaint at work, having failed to make or been late on a court-ordered payment, having been part of a civil lawsuit, and failing to disclose two arrests,” read TCOLE’s Petition for Revocation filed in June.
However, when Fullen was elected Sheriff in Nov. 2024, state law blocked the revocation of his peace officer’s license.
A section of the Texas Occupations Code reads that the regulatory agency has the authority to revoke or suspend a peace officer’s license, “except with respect to an officer elected under the Texas Constitution.” The law further reads that TCOLE can revoke the license of an officer elected under the Texas Constitution only if the person is convicted of a felony or a “criminal offense directly involving the person’s duties as an officer.”
While revocation was off the table, Fullen still faced disciplinary action. Fullen appealed TCOLE’s recommendation to the State Office of Administrative Hearings. A hearing on this matter has not yet been held.
On election night, Fullen told KPRC 2 Investigates he was hoping to have the matter resolved before taking office. He also said he would address concerns from critics who raised this issue during his campaign.
“I’ll go out there and I’ll start meeting with them one on one in these communities and it won’t take them long to see that I’m a man of my word and I’m going to do what I tell them I’m going to do. So, we will build those bridges,” Fullen said on Nov. 5, 2024.
New legal action
While Fullen was awaiting his hearing before SOAH, TCOLE filed an amended complaint stating it was seeking to suspend his peace officer’s license for 10 years.
Fullen then filed a lawsuit in Galveston County claiming a 10-year suspension is tantamount to a revocation and therefore exceeds TCOLE’s authority.
“I think that by seeking a 10-year suspension, TCOLE has grossly overstepped. They are trying to do via administrative procedure what they couldn’t do at the ballot box. All Sheriff Fullen wants is to continue to serve the citizens of Galveston County honorably like he always has,” attorney Tony Buzbee wrote in a statement to KPRC 2 Investigates.
Buzbee refers to TCOLE’s recommendation as “lawfare” in the suit. However, he is clear to point out he is not trying to prevent the agency from carrying out its duties, which include possibly disciplining Fullen. The lawsuit is “seeking a declaratory judgment as to Sheriff Fullen’s rights.”
The lawsuit asks a Galveston County judge to declare a 10-year suspension would violate Fullen’s rights since it would amount to a revocation that is otherwise prohibited under state law.
Retired Galveston County Sheriff’s deputy Kenneth Williams filed the complaint with TCOLE that started this process. Williams supported Fullen’s opponent in the March Republican primary.
“Sheriff Jimmy Fullen’s lawsuit against the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) and its director, Greg Stevens, strikes me as frivolous and without merit. This case is not about politics—it’s about accountability. The 39 false statements, omissions, and unreported incidents, including terminations and racial discrimination complaints, are serious violations that TCOLE is rightfully addressing. TCOLE is doing exactly what taxpayers expect: ensuring honest, ethical law enforcement officers serve our communities. Many officers have faced consequences for lesser offenses, but Sheriff Fullen’s access to expensive legal representation shouldn’t shield him from the same standard of justice. This isn’t ‘Lawfare’—it’s about equal justice under the law, and I hope the court sees it that way,” Williams wrote in a statement to KPRC 2 Investigates.
Officials with TCOLE have not yet responded to KPRC 2’s request for comment.
