LAWRENCE – Amid calls for his termination, former Provisional police Chief William Castro is set to return to work at City Hall next week as Mayor Brian DePena’s chief of staff.
A consultant’s report, commissioned by DePena’s administration and released early this week, recommended Castro’s termination for falsifying a police report while he was police chief and then lying about it, among other transgressions.
Castro, a retired county correctional officer and political ally of DePena, served as acting police chief for five months until the suspension of his policing credentials by a state oversight board in March 2024.
In October 2023, DePena signed a contract with Castro saying if he was terminated as police chief he could return to the chief of staff position.
City attorney Tim Houten sent an email Friday indicating Castro “in accordance with the City ordinance … will return to the position of Chief of Staff, effective Tuesday, January 21.”
“Please extend your support to William as he resumes his duties,” Houten wrote.
The current chief of staff, Santiago Matias, resigned effective Friday, according to the email.
While still receiving his $210,000 salary, Castro was stripped of his policing credentials by the Peace Officer Standard and Training Commission, or POST, in March 2024.
The discipline came after Castro was involved in a police pursuit in February 2024.
Castro wrote in a police report that he responded to an armed bank robbery instead of the lesser, accurate offense of a person who attempted to cash a bad check, according to the report issued by Comprehensive Investigations and Consulting.
“Acting Chief Castro broke the law in an effort to cover up a mistake that he made. Instead of accepting the consequences for his actions, he fabricated a false police report,” the report states. “A police officer cannot put inaccurate information into a police report. As the leader of the Lawrence Police Department, this conduct is unacceptable. The most important quality an officer possesses is their integrity. Acting Chief Castro has sacrificed his integrity for his own benefit.”
The report adds, “Lawrence Police Department’s sworn Oath of Office states that officers commit to be ‘Honest in thought and deed in both my personal and official life.'”
The CIC report also recommends termination for action Castro took “to hire an unqualified candidate,” James Fermin, intimidating an officer in an incident involving DePena, and for involving himself in Police Department issues and discussions at City Hall after POST stripped him of his policing credentials.
Despite multiple requests, DePena has not commented to The Eagle-Tribune regarding the CIC report.
This is a developing story. A full report will appear at eagletribune.com and in the weekend print edition of The Eagle-Tribune.
Follow staff reporter Jill Harmacinski on Twitter/X @EagleTribJill and on Threads at jillyharma.