COFFEE CITY, Texas — A trial date has been set for former Coffee City, Texas, police chief JohnJay Portillo.
The fired lawman is facing felony tampering with a government document charges for allegedly lying on his Coffee City job application.
Portillo appeared before a Henderson County judge Monday afternoon. Defense attorney Justin Weiner said he was not able to come to a plea agreement with prosecutors, and Judge Mark Calhoon set an Oct. 22 trial date..
“It’s always best to try and resolve without a jury trial as most cases do, but we’re going to keep pushing as far as we can for John to move forward,” Weiner said.
When pressed if his client is prepared to plead guilty given the right deal, Weiner declined to comment.
“I’m not going to answer that right now, respectfully,” he said.
The six felony counts in the grand jury indictment allege Portillo repeatedly lied on his Coffee City job application by failing to disclose a driving under the influence charge out of Florida and discipline he received at two previous police agencies in Harris County.
The Texas Commission on Law Enforcement, TCOLE, requires police agency job applicants to disclose any prior citations, arrests, convictions and disciplinary actions on their personal history statements. The form contains a written warning: “Be truthful, as there are criminal consequences for lying on a government document.”
The criminal allegations against Portillo are similar to issues his former officers faced, a KHOU 11 investigation found last summer. Portillo was sworn in as Coffee City Police Chief in April 2021 and quickly expanded the police force to 50 officers for a town of barely 250 people. KHOU 11 Investigates revealed how more than half of those cops had been suspended, demoted, terminated, or dishonorably discharged from their previous law enforcement jobs. The then-chief conceded the appointments allowed officers to work extra jobs, where they earned up to $100,000 a year.
Portillo himself worked extra security jobs. At an apartment complex in Southeast Houston, nearly 200 miles away from his former full-time job in Coffee City, KHOU 11 Investigates uncovered a profanity-laced tirade Portillo launched at an elected Harris County constable, involving a dispute over filing charges on a suspect
The Coffee City council unanimously voted to fire the chief on Sept. 12, and in a rare move, also shut down the entire police department.
Along with Portillo, a Henderson County grand jury indicted six other former Coffee City officers. Those cases are still pending.