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'''Agustin I. Dovalina, III''' (born 1955), is a former chief of police in [[Laredo]], a border city with [[Mexico]] and the seat of Webb County in south [[Texas]], who served from 1996 until October 22, 2007, amid the revelation of corrupt practices in his department. Four days after his sudden retirement,  Dovalina pleaded guilty in [[U.S. District Court]] to [[extortion]] and the acceptance of $13,000 in [[bribe]]s from the owner of a [[gambling]] establishment.<ref>"Chief guilty of taking bribes, ''Laredo Morning Times,'' October 26, 2007, p. 1.</ref>

'''Agustin I. Dovalina, III''' (born 1955), is a former chief of police in [[Laredo]], a border city with [[Mexico]] and the seat of Webb County in south [[Texas]], who served from 1996 until October 22, 2007, amid the revelation of corrupt practices in his department. Four days after his sudden retirement,  Dovalina pleaded guilty in [[U.S. District Court]] to [[extortion]] and the acceptance of $13,000 in [[bribe]]s from the owner of a [[gambling]] establishment.<ref>"Chief guilty of taking bribes," ''Laredo Morning Times,'' October 26, 2007, p. 1.</ref>

   

   

Dovalina conspired with retired Sergeant Alfonso Santos and former Lieutenant Eloy Rodriguez to extort more than $90,000 from the operators of illegal eight-liner gambling businesses in exchange for protection from police raids.<ref>"Chief guilty of taking bribes, ''Laredo Morning Times'', October 26, 2007, p. 1.</ref> Octavio Salinas, II, the [[attorney]] for Dovalina, blamed the crime on a "financial crisis" which prompted the former chief "into a moment where he lacked judgment." Dovalina actually had a family income approaching $200,000 annually, very large by most standards in Laredo. Meanwhile, Dovalina had a [[heart attack]] and was involved in four fender-bender accidents in his police vehicle, two of which netted tickets. Then, his house burned, and a daughter suffered smoke inhalation. In July 2006, Dovalina underwent an emergency balloon angioplasty to clear a clogged [[artery]] and restore blood flow. According to court documents, Dovalina accepted his first bribe in June 2006, a month prior to his surgery; he took the second $5,000 bribe in September 2006. Dovalina, however, has disputed the amount of the bribes that he admitted to having received. So has Santos, who contends that he received $27,800 for himself and $10,000 for Dovalina, not the $95,000 claimed by the government. Santos and Rodriguez also competed for illegal funds and influence with Dovalina. Rodriguez also claims that he gave Dovalina another $10,000, but Dovalina disputes both of his former associates. The acceptance of the bribes was recorded on videotape.<ref>Julian Aguilar, "Just the facts: Documents show Dovalina's alleged hardship did not exist", ''Laredo Morning Times'', November 25, 2007, pp. 1, 11A</ref>

Dovalina conspired with retired Sergeant Alfonso Santos and former Lieutenant Eloy Rodriguez to extort more than $90,000 from the operators of illegal eight-liner gambling businesses in exchange for protection from police raids.<ref>"Chief guilty of taking bribes," ''Laredo Morning Times'', October 26, 2007, p. 1.</ref> Octavio Salinas, II, the [[attorney]] for Dovalina, blamed the crime on a "financial crisis" which prompted the former chief "into a moment where he lacked judgment." Dovalina actually had a family income approaching $200,000 annually, very large by most standards in Laredo. Meanwhile, Dovalina had a [[heart attack]] and was involved in four fender-bender accidents in his police vehicle, two of which netted tickets. Then, his house burned, and a daughter suffered smoke inhalation. In July 2006, Dovalina underwent an emergency balloon angioplasty to clear a clogged [[artery]] and restore blood flow. According to court documents, Dovalina accepted his first bribe in June 2006, a month prior to his surgery; he took the second $5,000 bribe in September 2006. Dovalina, however, has disputed the amount of the bribes that he admitted to having received. So has Santos, who contends that he received $27,800 for himself and $10,000 for Dovalina, not the $95,000 claimed by the government. Santos and Rodriguez also competed for illegal funds and influence with Dovalina. Rodriguez also claims that he gave Dovalina another $10,000, but Dovalina disputed his former associates. The acceptance of the bribes was recorded on videotape.<ref>Julian Aguilar, "Just the facts: Documents show Dovalina's alleged hardship did not exist," ''Laredo Morning Times'', November 25, 2007, pp. 1, 11A</ref>

   

   

==Background==

==Background==

==Accomplishments as police chief==

==Accomplishments as police chief==

   

   

In 2006, Chief Dovalina received a favorable annual evaluation from the city manager, his direct supervisor. He procured high marks for exceeding standards in all areas. Then Deputy City Manager Cynthia Collazo (succeeded by City Manager Carlos Villarreal, who has since left that positioin) wrote that Dovalina "fosters ethical practices and accountability throughout the department and the organization." However, in 1998, then City Manager Florencio Peña ranked Dovalina below standard in regard to quality and quantity of work, dependability, communication skills, and interpersonal relations. Peña also chastised Dovalina for failure to have communicated regularly with city management. Dovalina issued a rebuttal in which he claimed that he had "submitted numerous reports to [Peña] via inter-office mail that somehow have gotten 'mysteriously misplaced' and have never arrived at their destination." The letter stressed too that Peña had opposed Dovalina's selection as chief: The appointment "was literally shoved down your throat by [the city] council. As a result, there exists a perceived aura of mistrust and suspicious overtones to the point that I feel that as my boss you would do anything to discredit my work in order to make me look bad in the eyes of council." When Peña was replaced by Larry Dovalina in 2001, a cousin of Agustin Dovalina, the chief's problems with the city manager's office abruptly ended.<ref>Ashley Richards, "The Rise and Fall of a Police Chief", ''Laredo Morning Times'', November 11, 2007, pp. 1, 14A.</ref> Larry Dovalina was dismissed by the city council in 2006, on a 5-4 roll call, with then Mayor Raul G. Salinas casting the tie-breaking vote. Former Mayor Betty Flores, who has emerged as a principal defender of Dovalina, her fellow [[Democratic Party|Democrat]],<ref>Dovalina voted in the 2006 Democratic primary, according to the Webb County Election Administrator's office.</ref> said that Peña never mentioned to her any problems that he had encountered with Dovalina.

In 2006, Chief Dovalina received a favorable annual evaluation from the city manager, his direct supervisor. He procured high marks for exceeding standards in all areas. Then Deputy City Manager Cynthia Collazo (succeeded by City Manager Carlos Villarreal, who has since left that positioin) wrote that Dovalina "fosters ethical practices and accountability throughout the department and the organization." However, in 1998, then City Manager Florencio Peña ranked Dovalina below standard in regard to quality and quantity of work, dependability, communication skills, and interpersonal relations. Peña also chastised Dovalina for failure to have communicated regularly with city management. Dovalina issued a rebuttal in which he claimed that he had "submitted numerous reports to [Peña] via inter-office mail that somehow have gotten 'mysteriously misplaced' and have never arrived at their destination." The letter stressed too that Peña had opposed Dovalina's selection as chief: The appointment "was literally shoved down your throat by [the city] council. As a result, there exists a perceived aura of mistrust and suspicious overtones to the point that I feel that as my boss you would do anything to discredit my work in order to make me look bad in the eyes of council." When Peña was replaced by Larry Dovalina in 2001, a cousin of Agustin Dovalina, the chief's problems with the city manager's office abruptly ended.<ref>Ashley Richards, "The Rise and Fall of a Police Chief", ''Laredo Morning Times,'' November 11, 2007, pp. 1, 14A.</ref> Larry Dovalina was dismissed by the city council in 2006, on a 5-4 roll call, with then Mayor Raul G. Salinas casting the tie-breaking vote. Former Mayor Betty Flores, who has emerged as a principal defender of Dovalina, her fellow [[Democratic Party|Democrat]],<ref>Dovalina voted in the 2006 Democratic primary, according to the Webb County Election Administrator's office.</ref> said that Peña never mentioned to her any problems that he had encountered with Dovalina.

   

   

Dovalina modernized the department. In 1999, officers received  [[radio]]s in their patrol cars. In 2006, Dovalina unveiled a digital 800-megahertz radio system that shields access to criminals and the public. Dovalina proved adept and procuring funding at the state and national levels for departmental operations, having obtained additional patrol cars to replace older vehicles which were frequently in the garage for repair. He purchased mobile data terminals and dash cameras for police vehicles. In 2005, he started Laredo's own bomb squad. Previously, the city shut down an area and waited for a squad from [[San Antonio]] to come to defuse the situation. Dovalina was chief when Laredo's Special Weapons And Tactics division received a major upgrade, with the purchase of a mobile command center. The department was fully computerized.<ref>Ashley Richards, "The Rise and Fall of a Police Chief", ''Laredo Morning Times'', November 11, 2007, pp. 1, 14A.</ref>  

Dovalina modernized the department. In 1999, officers received  [[radio]]s in their patrol cars. In 2006, Dovalina unveiled a digital 800-megahertz radio system that shields access to criminals and the public. Dovalina proved adept and procuring funding at the state and national levels for departmental operations, having obtained additional patrol cars to replace older vehicles which were frequently in the garage for repair. He purchased mobile data terminals and dash cameras for police vehicles. In 2005, he started Laredo's own bomb squad. Previously, the city shut down an area and waited for a squad from [[San Antonio]] to come to defuse the situation. Dovalina was chief when Laredo's Special Weapons And Tactics division received a major upgrade, with the purchase of a mobile command center. The department was fully computerized.<ref>Ashley Richards, "The Rise and Fall of a Police Chief", ''Laredo Morning Times,'' November 11, 2007, pp. 1, 14A.</ref>  

   

   

===Downfall===

===Downfall===