A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the police chief of Fairview, Granver Tolliver, getting placed on administrative leave. The quickly growing Collin County town sandwiched between Allen and McKinney made it difficult for me to confirm that fact. They hired the aptly named lawyer David Overcash, with Wolfe, Tidwell & McCoy, to stall an open-records request for about a month.
Now the town won’t even acknowledge receipt of my most recent records request seeking confirmation that its police chief has resigned. Town manager Julie Couch: silent. Human resources director Whitney Casey: nope. Mayor Henry Lesser: head in the sand.
Here’s what I can tell you, though: Tolliver, a onetime deputy chief in Dallas, has resigned. I’m not sure exactly when. Could have been last week. There’s a lawyer named Bob Gorsky who does a lot of work for cops. Last week he posted a message to a private Facebook group called UndergroundCop: “He has resigned. More to come. We are not representing him.”
And Tolliver himself? This morning he replied to a text seeking comment about his resignation. His response in full:
“When you work 50-75 hours a week: days, nights, weekends, holidays, and you realize the organization you’ve sacrificed over 20 years of your life for doesn’t care about you, and your boss doesn’t care about you, one of you have to go! That’s all I have to say about it! Take care sir. GT”
I wish I could tell you whether Fairview has named an interim chief. I called the non-emergency number of the Fairview PD and, after trying multiple extensions, couldn’t get a human on the phone. You guys stay safe up there.
UPDATE (7/14/23, 5 p.m.) This morning I got a response to my records request from Fairview. Here is what Town Manager Julie Couch told the police department on July 3:
I am writing to inform you that Granver Tolliver has resigned as Police Chief effective immediately. I am sure the last few weeks have led to some uncertainties, but I want to assure you that I will be working on assigning an interim administrator to lead the department while the Town begins the search for a Police Chief. For now, the Sergeants will continue to report directly to me as they have the last few weeks. During these transitions, I ask that we all remain focused and continue to work together as a team. I appreciate everyone’s flexibility when it comes to scheduling and your commitment to the department and Town.
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