More than four months have passed since the night a Wichita Falls police officer struck a car with his patrol cruiser at high speeds, killing two teenage girls inside the other vehicle.
Department of Public Safety investigators released earlier this week a report indicating Teddie Whitefield had Xanax and diet pills in his system before the fatal wreck. No criminal charges have been filed to date against Whitefield, who was indefinitely suspended from the Police Department in August.
A source in the Wichita County District Attorney's Office told the Times Record News on Wednesday the investigation into the incident remains ongoing.
The source said the district attorney's office did not expect that investigation to be completed until after the new year.
Whitefield appealed his suspension and has an arbitration hearing with city legal officials set for February. He is being represented by attorney Craig Driskell of the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas.
Whitefield was suspended for several alleged violations of Police Department regulations — including using the prescription medications without reporting them to a supervisor and not providing documentation of medical clearance to use them while on duty. Officials also cited him for traveling at excessive speeds, making no reasonable attempt to avoid the collision and not wearing a seat belt.
Whitefield is seeking lost pay and benefits. In his appeal letter to city officials, Whitefield's legal counsel claimed the charges against him were "legally insufficient to support the imposition of any penalty or punishment and legally insufficient to support a conclusion that the appellant was guilty as charged in the charging instrument."
It also considered his suspension "clearly excessive considering all the mitigating circumstances."
An initial accident report listed speed as a contributing factor in the wreck but also noted the use of a cellphone inside the victims' car at the time of the wreck and Whitefield's use of the prescription medications as possible factors, as well. The driver of the girls' car reportedly did not have a valid driver's license.
The report showed that at about 9:30 p.m. June 30, Whitefield's patrol car struck the girls' car on its passenger side while traveling at least 80 mph along Jacksboro Highway — nearly twice the posted speed limit. Police logs showed Whitefield was not responding to an emergency call at the time.
The impact resulted in the deaths of 18-year-old Yeni Lopez and 13-year-old Gloria Montoya. It was later revealed Lopez was about eight months pregnant.
Whitefield received lesser injuries and was treated at a hospital and released shortly after the wreck.
Written by Matt Ledesma.
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