The Temple Police Department has accepted the resignation of former Officer Carmen DeCruz, effective late Tuesday night Feb. 18, 2020.

News of DeCruz's resignation came via a press release from Temple PD early Wednesday afternoon.

Back in December 4, an internal affairs investigation into Mr. DeCruz was started to determine if he violated any policies or procedures during the officer-involved shooting of Michael Dean - an African American man DeCruz stopped near the intersection of Southeast HK Dodgen Loop and Little River Road on the night of Tuesday, December 3. Texas Rangers were brought in to conduct an independent criminal investigation.

A report cited by our partners at News 10 indicates that Dean was unarmed when he was shot in the head.

According to that report, the shooting occurred after DeCruz tried to stop Dean for speeding, after which a short pursuit ensued. It's unclear what happened between the time Dean pulled over and the shooting.

Decruz, was charged with manslaughter on February 10th.

Interim Chief Jim Tobin reportedly met with DeCruz during an administrative hearing and proposed an indefinite suspension, which is equivalent to termination under Texas Civil Service law. Before that process could be completed, DeCruz submitted a personal letter of resignation.

The press release reads that because of Decruz's resignation, the internal investigation and administrative hearing process has been closed and concluded without a final disposition of discipline.

"Under Section 143.089(a) of the Texas Local Government Code and the Texas Public Information Act, documents related to the suspension, demotion or indefinite suspension of a police officer or fire fighter become public once the discipline has been imposed by the Chief," the press release reads. "Because the disciplinary process was terminated by Mr. DeCruz's resignation, the records related to the internal investigation and administrative hearing process cannot be released under the state open records law."

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