GUADALUPE COUNTY, Texas – Two members of the Santa Clara marshal’s office have been indicted on multiple charges of abusing their positions in law enforcement, court records show.
Chief Marshal Jerry Airola, 58, faces multiple charges for misuse of official information, official oppression, and unauthorized obtaining of criminal history record information. The offenses date back to June 2021, March 2022, and August 2022.
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Terreal Hatcher, 34, is charged with two counts of official oppression for his actions as deputy marshal during what appears to be the same August 2022 incident.
Misuse of official information is a third-degree felony charge, while the others are misdemeanors.
Santa Clara is a small city in Guadalupe County, near Marion.
The City of New Berlin’s website shows Hatcher was appointed its City Marshal in 2021, though Guadalupe County Sheriff Arnold Zwicke said, to his understanding, Hatcher still works at both offices.
The indictments were all filed either Mar. 7 or Mar. 8.
According to the indictments, Airola used his access to non-public information to compile reports and use them to threaten what appears to be a married man and woman in June 2021. Then in March 2022, Airola is accused of obtaining the same woman’s criminal history in “an unauthorized manner.”
Airola and Hatcher are accused of unlawfully detaining or arresting three people in August 2022.
KSAT is not naming the three people who were detained because none of them people have either Guadalupe County arrest or court records relating to the dates referenced in the charge.
Zwicke told KSAT that the Guadalupe County Sheriff’s Office had received a complaint, which it forwarded to the Texas Rangers. He did not provide details of the original complaint.
Texas Department of Public Safety Spokesman Lt. Jason Reyes would not provide details of the investigation, either, saying everything had been passed onto prosecutors.
A call to the Guadalupe County Attorney’s office on Friday was not immediately returned.
No one answered the phones at either Santa Clara or New Berlin’s marshal offices when KSAT called Friday, and both city’s offices were closed for the day.
Emails sent to Santa Clara’s mayor and city secretary were not returned before the close of business.