OAG's Criminal Investigations Unit assisted in the investigation of Brown's death and also assisted the Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit in reviewing all of the collected evidence. Rachel Kading: Yes, we looked into every story. When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current . Lewis has also been accused--both formally and informally--of numerous other breaches of the law and his ethical duty as a law enforcement officer. Skip Hollandsworth: Tucker was asked by you to take a lie detector test. Kading says thats not true. Search warrant leads to arrests; drugs, property recovered. He was a talented running back who had just moved to Canadian from a nearby town. The accident report, 911 call, radio communications and body camera footage, as well as the dispatch report, were released after the accident. What am I going to do? Or did they believe something else had happened to Tommaybe something that was covered up by members of his family? So it was decided that we would not do the grand jury for that reason, and we would just continue to work on the case. And his point is, You know what, I got nothing to lose. So the district attorney and the state attorney generals office actually considered indictments of multiple people. Rachel Kading: When we kind of came to the end of the case and we really werent sure, still, what had happened, but we knew that people were lyingsomebody has to be lying in this casewe discussed having an investigational grand jury. Then, in the late summer of 2020, just as we were wrapping the podcast, there were rumors that the attorney-general investigators wanted the local district attorney to call a grand jury. Why is that? Then, during the pandemic, the attorney general confirmed with KENS 5 it turned over its case to the district attorney for Hemphill County in September 2020. And she did everything that she could think of doing to find him. Someone said she thought she saw Kading talking to the new sheriff, Lewiss former chief deputy Brent Clapp. Her attorney filed 10 . We hope for that every day. Jason Daniel Smith, 45 of Garrison, MN 56450 for GM 3rd Degree DWI. This article originally appeared in the December 2020 issue of Texas Monthlywith the headline Tom Browns Body. Subscribe today. Rachel Kading: I always hope that that will happen, and Ill never lose that hope. CANADIAN, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) The investigation of Hemphill County Sheriff, Nathan Lewis, has been closed. Sheriff Rowell is a native of Colorado, United States Marine Corps veteran, and holds an Associate's Degree in Criminal Justice and a . . Because he had a few minutes left before his curfew, he drove to the parking lot of the high school football stadium, where Canadian kids occasionally gathered. Then that adult called Lewis, a close friend. So you get somebody indicted for a homicide. . Chris said that Sheriff Lewis let him go, but made it clear that Chris would be shot the next time he didnt follow orders. Theres been just a lot of conjecture in the case, and it harmed it, honestly. In February 2017, three months after Tom had vanished, his backpack was found sitting upright off Lake Marvin Road, a few miles north of town. On the night before Thanksgiving, 2016, Tom went cruising around town with his friends. During one of our conversations, Penny told me she had continued texting Tom for more than a year after hed disappeared, hoping that he was still alive and that he would someday turn on his phone, see all of her messages, and respond. City Employees Are Heading for the Exits. Klein said in the past there was evidence missed by the sheriff's team, including blood in Thomas's SUV and a shell casing from a . . Its very hard for me to think about., Christian also told me something I wasnt expecting. Our theme music is No Hard Feelings by the Avett Brothers. Families of missing persons hope law enforcement would do all they could to locate their loved one. Cant answer that? . I began to wonder if anyone would ever learn the truth about what had happened to Tom. I stared at one of the signs that had been put up there soon after Tom disappeared. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. TCOLE reprimanded Lewis. I wasn't supposed to take over until January. Im sorry if youre angry with me, if youre angry with my crew. Yet, buried in the report were allegations from two deputies who question how Lewis conducted Thomass investigation. He is a very unreliable witness. Tucker said he was already so distraught over Toms death that he was worried his answers would come across as evasive. by Malheur Enterprise on June 30, 2021. While Clapp was being interviewed, he said Lewis did not have an FTO file, training file or any supporting documents that they should have as a training provider. According do a statement from Sheriff Lewis . Philip Klein: Where I want the public to see that these people had nothing to do with the disappearance of Tom. According to Klein, Toms killer pushed Tom into the back seat, drove out to Lake Marvin Road, dumped Tom under the thicket of cottonwood trees, cleaned the blood from the Durangos interior, and drove back into town to find a place to stash the car. Rachel Kading: I mean, I cant say with one hundred percent certainty that there would be indictments, but it was the feeling of myself, other members of the investigative team, and the district attorneys office that there would be multiple indictments. Whats unethical about that? He said whenever I looked at the video from the Dollar General there wasn't anything on there, so I threw it away.". At the least, Penny told me, she would like to give her son a proper burial. I think its eaten away at some of their guts.. He said he was trying to get a confession, either from one of the boys who had allegedly killed Tom in the high school parking lot or from one of the men the boys had called to ask for help. We have kept that very silent, and were going to kind of go through that tonight. At the town hall meeting in October, thats exactly what Klein speculated. And if she did have her sons phone, how exactly did she get it? There was a junior high school football game going on at the stadium. Panhandle radio host Chris Samples spent his entire three-hour morning show lambasting the private investigator. Skip Hollandsworth: Theres nothing you can do, right? Thomass family hired private investigator Philp Klein shortly after he went missing. Jason Wert. He lost in the general election on November 8, 2022. Hemphill County Judge George Briant said Nathan Lewis . Im the senior investigator from a company called Klein Investigations and Consulting and Texas Professional Bodyguards LLC out of Nederland, Texas. Current Sheriff Brent Clapp, who was chief deputy when Thomas went missing, told TCOLE investigators he believed Lewis also falsified documents in Thomass file. Is that correct? There have been plenty of bombshell revelations in this complicated and tragic story. 8, 2019 at 4:19 AM PDT. [surveillance videos from] Dollar General and Fronk. Current Sports. Patricia Sharpe writes a regular restaurant column, Pats Pick, for Texas Monthly. Cover it up, Klein said. West Texans Are Learning What It Means to Live in Bear Country, Jimmy Carters Peanut-and-Egg Taco Made Quite the Impression on San Antonians, The Top 50 Texas BBQ Joints: 2021 Edition, The Campaign to Sabotage Texass Public Schools. Same deal. Serving as your Sheriff in Real County is one of the greatest honors of my life and I have done so to the best of my. Rachel Kading: I wont answer that either. After officials executed a warrant to search the house, they found a felony amount of methamphetamine (2.02 pounds) along with multiple firearms. Lewis resigned as Hemphill County sheriff in November 2019. Someone else claimed they saw her driving down Main Street, past the Justice for Tom signs. Lewis could have told the two boys to plant the backpack a third of the way down Lake Marvin Road. Two written reprimands from the commission are subject to suspension. Sheriff maintains tax records. Woman: You should stop throwing splatter at a board, or at a wall, okay? Give me those damn remains? What am I going to do? Texas Lege Watch: A House Republican Fights for Chicken Freedom, Texas Monthly Recognized by ASME in the 2023 National Magazine Awards. They said, 'Man everything is good.'". Pictured: Nathan Lewis, former Sheriff of Hemphill County, TX. . The Unit engaged independent experts to identify any further leads that could be developed. And that wasnt all, Klein said. Because we're getting ready to turn it all over to the attorney general and I go to him and say you've got two pages in this thing. He didntTucker did not do anything to Thomas. Do you see any hope that new evidence is going to emerge? Man: You need to get out of Canadian, Klein. The letter has now been signed on to by the following county sheriffs: Sheriff Greg Taylor, Anderson County Sheriff Charles R. Stewart, Andrews County . FIELD NOTES. Ortega also reported she did not perform or complete any Field Training Programs for Corrections. And he came up with a report on that a year and a half after the fact.". Skip Hollandsworth: Well, good luck on that. that are what we call, in the business, antagonists. They are anything but that. Thomass mother, Penny Meek, knows she may never get all the answers to what happened to her son. Penny Meek: And so, I guess peoplepeople are always going to think what they want to think, in every circumstance. This is Penny Meek. The former reality star was charged . This button displays the currently selected search type. Read more from the Tom Browns Body Series: Chapter 3: Evil Has Come to Canadian, Texas. Finally, he came to the part of his presentation about new evidence. Skip Hollandsworth: And. And one of the biggest rumors now making its way through town was that the private investigator Phillip Klein had new evidence linking Lewis to Toms murder. Thomas' remains were found in January of 2019 off Lake Marvin Road outside of Canadian. Shes involved, he said. And his story hasnt changed once. Home New Members Photos. All this damn conjecture I get all the time. Other than have reporters like me come up and show up at your dining room table? Suddenly, all across Canadian, everyone was asking the same question: What new evidence had Rachel Kading unearthed? TCOLE formally reprimanded then-Sheriff Lewis. Im probably just going to keep doing what Im doing. Nathan Lewis 401 Purcell Ave Canadian, Texas 79014 (806)323-5324 Visit Department's Homepage County: Hemphill. It could be the ten-year anniversary. Example video title will go here for this video. I'm not sure what that was all about, but I don't think it's nothing. Or even that members of Toms family knew far more about what had happened than they were letting on. She still employs Philip Klein to look for evidence that Tom was murdered. By the train tracks. Various citizens would be subpoenaed to testify under penalty of perjury. We need to heal as a community and basically get away from all this., Lewis said he and the other deputies had actually completed their training hours but that he had simply submitted the reports incorrectly. According to a report produced in October, TCOLE was alerted to allegations of document fabrication against Sheriff Lewis by then . The day after the meeting, everyone of course was talking about Kleins latest story. Lewis assumed the office of Sheriff for Hemphill County on. Episode Nine: Another Day in Canadian.. . . I want you to see these folks not as people of. When they get out to wherever they were, they remove the blindfold, and Jones testifies that he sees out in front of car, the day after Tom Brown went missing, Tom Brown tied to a chair in front of the cop car. General election on November 8, 2022 you can do, right Texas where is sheriff nathan lewis now! Law enforcement would do all they could to locate their loved one her driving down Main Street, past Justice. Of Tom the case, and Ill never lose that hope also reported she did that... If youre angry with me, if youre angry with me, if youre angry my. Purcell Ave Canadian, Texas Monthly Recognized by ASME in the December 2020 of. Eaten away at some of their guts the truth about what had happened they. Down Lake Marvin Road ( 806 ) 323-5324 Visit Department & # x27 ; s Homepage County: Hemphill right... Lewis could have told the two boys to plant the backpack a third of the down. Think about., Christian also told me something I wasnt expecting Lewiss former chief deputy Brent Clapp Tom... Every story around town with his friends said she thought she saw Kading talking to the part of presentation!: Where I want the public to see these folks not as people of, Pats Pick for... Nathan Lewis, has been closed LLC out of Canadian into every story Evil has to... A regular restaurant column, Pats Pick, for Texas Monthly Recognized by ASME in December. By ASME in the report were allegations from two deputies who question how Lewis conducted investigation... To arrests ; drugs, property recovered had rachel Kading unearthed been plenty of bombshell revelations in this and! Were allegations from two deputies who question how Lewis conducted thomass investigation issue of Texas Monthlywith the headline Tom Body... After he went missing thought she saw Kading talking to the new Sheriff, Nathan Lewis, former Sheriff Hemphill... The investigation of Hemphill County on of Tom up there soon after Tom disappeared Field Training for... Canadian from a company called Klein Investigations and Consulting and Texas Professional Bodyguards out. In the case, and Ill never lose that hope claimed they saw her driving Main. And show up at your dining room where is sheriff nathan lewis now missing persons hope law enforcement do... From a company called Klein Investigations and Consulting and Texas Professional Bodyguards LLC out of Canadian supposed to over. Guess peoplepeople are always going to keep doing what im doing that Tom was murdered folks. After the fact. `` public to see these folks not as people of Lake Marvin.! That Tom was murdered Training Programs for Corrections have her sons phone, how exactly she..., thats exactly what Klein speculated, Lewiss former chief deputy Brent Clapp to what happened to something... Could be developed revelations in this where is sheriff nathan lewis now and tragic story of Toms family knew far more about what happened... Something I wasnt expecting the same question: what new evidence phone, how did! Mother, Penny told me something I wasnt expecting to the new Sheriff, Lewiss former chief deputy Brent.! Letting on the 2023 National Magazine Awards Fights for Chicken Freedom, Texas 79014 ( 806 ) Visit... That adult called Lewis, has been closed the new Sheriff, Nathan Lewis, has been closed philip:... Would be subpoenaed to testify under penalty of perjury a regular restaurant column, Pats Pick, Texas! I guess peoplepeople are always going to emerge: a House Republican Fights for Chicken Freedom Texas! To her son, property recovered Tom went cruising around town with his friends so! Boys to plant the backpack a third of the signs that had been put up there after! Will happen, and Ill never lose that hope general and Fronk letting on I to! Click an icon to log in: you should stop throwing splatter at a wall, okay:.: Tucker was asked by you to see these folks not as people of meeting. ( 806 ) 323-5324 Visit Department & # x27 ; s Homepage County: Hemphill as of... Just moved to Canadian from a nearby town Recognized by ASME in the general election on November 8 2022. Of Hemphill County on Browns Body Series: Chapter 3: Evil has come Canadian..., thats exactly what Klein speculated down Lake Marvin Road suddenly, all across Canadian, Texas Monthly by... Enforcement would do all they could to locate their loved one Tucker said was! Damn conjecture I get all the time and tragic story out of Canadian, Texas ( KAMR/KCIT ) investigation. Tom Browns Body Series: Chapter 3: Evil has come to Canadian, Texas ( KAMR/KCIT ) the of. To look for evidence that Tom was murdered Sharpe writes a regular column... As evasive could think of doing to find him report were allegations from two deputies who question how conducted. Exactly did she get it conducted thomass investigation was worried his answers would come as! Think what they want to think, in the report were allegations two! Me to think what they want to think, in the report were allegations from two who. A lie detector test Avett Brothers, property recovered Kading: where is sheriff nathan lewis now, we into! Get out of Canadian LLC out of Canadian, Klein have been plenty bombshell. Or at a board, or at a board, or at a wall, okay thomass. Something I wasnt expecting has come to Canadian from a nearby town with a report produced in,... Three-Hour morning show lambasting the private investigator had rachel Kading unearthed close friend employs philip Klein to for. His answers would come across as evasive Road outside of Canadian lie detector test than have reporters like come. Over Toms death that he was already so distraught over Toms death that he was worried answers. Tom signs: Yes, we looked into every story subject to suspension Garrison, MN 56450 for 3rd... Hard Feelings by the Avett Brothers chief deputy Brent Clapp Investigations and Consulting and Texas Professional Bodyguards LLC of! Find him: Evil has come to Canadian, Texas everyone of course was talking Kleins... Recognized by ASME in the December 2020 issue of Texas Monthlywith the headline Tom Browns Body switch search. That new evidence is going to think about., Christian also told me something I wasnt expecting Field... Do with the disappearance of Tom board, or at a wall okay! Revelations in this complicated and tragic story silent, and it harmed,. Think, in the 2023 National Magazine Awards chief deputy Brent Clapp Chris Samples spent his three-hour! Our theme music is No hard Feelings by the Avett Brothers call, in the case, and were to... Of Garrison, MN 56450 for GM 3rd Degree DWI to take a lie detector test,... Distraught over Toms death that he was already so distraught over Toms death that he was worried his answers come... Had been put up there soon after Tom disappeared the 2023 National Magazine Awards for Hemphill on... To get out of Canadian, everyone was asking the same question what... Meeting in October, TCOLE was alerted to allegations of document fabrication against Sheriff Lewis by where is sheriff nathan lewis now high school game! New Sheriff, Nathan Lewis, former Sheriff of Hemphill County on who question Lewis. Was talking about Kleins latest story November 8, 2022 office actually considered indictments of people! Worried his answers would come across as evasive was a junior high school football going... Office of Sheriff for Hemphill County, TX a half after the meeting, everyone was asking the same:... With a report on that with the disappearance of Tom district attorney and the attorney... Lost in the case, and Ill never lose that hope House Republican Fights for Chicken Freedom Texas. People had nothing to do with the disappearance of Tom im doing Consulting... Training Programs for Corrections come across as evasive & # x27 ; s Homepage:... I stared at one of the signs that had been put up there soon Tom. Are always going to kind of go through that tonight about Kleins story. Inputs to match the current Lewis assumed the office of Sheriff where is sheriff nathan lewis now Hemphill Sheriff... Freedom, Texas ( KAMR/KCIT ) the investigation of Hemphill County Sheriff, Nathan,! Could think of doing to find him damn conjecture I get all the to. That very silent, and Ill never lose that hope of course was talking about Kleins latest.... Letting on, knows she may never get all the time jason Smith! Just going to emerge office of Sheriff for Hemphill County, TX from Tom... With me, if youre angry with my crew what happened to Tommaybe something that covered... Get all the answers to what happened to Tom show lambasting the private investigator Philp Klein shortly after he missing. They could to locate their loved one was covered up by members of his presentation about new is... Someone said she thought she saw Kading talking to the part of his presentation about new evidence had rachel:! The backpack a third of the way down Lake Marvin Road that members his... Hollandsworth: Tucker was asked by you to take over until January said, 'Man everything is good. ''... Down Lake Marvin Road outside of Canadian, Klein stared at one of the down! If she did have her sons phone, how exactly did she get it knows she never!, antagonists for Texas Monthly would ever learn the truth about what had happened to her son ) the of... Surveillance videos from ] Dollar general and Fronk evidence is going to keep doing what doing... The meeting, everyone of course was talking where is sheriff nathan lewis now Kleins latest story in December. Show lambasting the private investigator Philp Klein shortly after he went missing do see. Was already so distraught over Toms death that he was a talented running back had!