Greenwood police officer fired after domestic violence arrest

GREENWOOD, LA (KSLA) - A Greenwood police officer has been fired in the wake of his arrest this summer on a domestic violence charge, town officials have confirmed.

Greenwood Mayor Frank Stawasz reports that Sgt. Kevin Ainsworth is "no longer employed by the Town of Greenwood."

Stawasz said his attorneys have advised him against providing any other details due to this being a personnel matter.

"Basically, what I can tell you is that Sgt. Kevin Ainsworth is no longer employed with the Town of Greenwood Police Department. That's all I can comment on," GPD Chief Shayne Gibson told KSLA.

Ainsworth, 38, was arrested the night of July 22 at his home near Marshall, Texas, by Harrison County Sheriff's deputies.

He is free on $15,000 bond after being booked on a charge of assault-family violence.

Ainsworth also was placed on paid leave pending the results of a internal investigation and a decision by Stawasz.

Gibson said that he completed his internal investigation two weeks ago and that Ainsworth attended a predisciplinary conference with Stawasz on Sept. 11.

From there, Stawasz had five days to decide whether to take disciplinary action against Ainsworth, culminating in the decision to terminate him.

Harrison County sheriff's deputies say Ainsworth's wife has since dropped the assault charge, but the case remains open and he now faces a charge of disorderly conduct.

Community members concerned about Ainsworth's future as a police officer spoke during Monday night's Board of Aldermen meeting.

Former GPD volunteer Tiffanie Munds thanked Mayor Stawasz for choosing to terminate Ainsworth.

"Thank you for the choice you did make," Munds said during the meeting.

In a previous interview, Munds came forward to KSLA after Ainsworth's arrest saying she filed a complaint with Stawasz's office last December.

In it, she claimed Ainsworth made sexual advances on her while she volunteered at GPD during October 2015.

"Pinning me up against his vehicle," Munds told KSLA. "I think about three or four incidents when he touched me inappropriately while we were on patrol."

Stawasz sent Munds a letter this past February, reading they began an investigation into her claims "which included the town hiring special legal counsel to advise it with regard to the investigation."

The mayor's letter also read the town was "taking steps to address some of the issues" but Munds said nothing was changed.

"The chief wanted to do the investigation," she said. "Their response was inconclusive because they didn't have enough credible witnesses."

During Monday night's meeting, Stawasz told Munds she could not bring up Ainsworth specifically during the public comment period.

"I understand freedom of speech but there's also a legal aspect of Freedom of Speech as to what you can say and who you can say it to and, in this meeting, you can't bring individual names to the floor," he told her.

Still, Munds said she's thankful Ainsworth won't be returning to the police department.

"He does not deserve to protect anyone if he can't even protect his wife," she said.

Ainsworth's attorney, Pamela Breedlove, told KSLA she could not give any details at this time.

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