An officer who does not care about rules and regulations, violates overtime rules, and threatens to box others is not an officer we need serving us.

28 April 2024, El Paso, Texas, Steven Zimmerman – When does “Protect and Serve” the public cross over into “Line My Pockets and Protect Myself?” In the case of Lt. Frank Rodriguez, out of the Northeast Regional Command of the El Paso Police Department, that was over four years ago.

The Jerusalem Press has had times sheets for Lt. Frank Rodriguez showing that he habitually works more than the allowed twenty-five hours per week overtime. 

As we wrote in The Rodriguez File, according to the Procedures policy, page 465 under 900.4 Restrictions. Subsection D) Outside employment is limited to 25 hours per week. 

The amount of time is limited for safety reasons. Rodriguez flaunts those regulations to amass a personal fortune and pay for his swimming pool in cash. However, this caused a problem for you and me, the citizens he swore and swore an oath to protect. 

In October 2023, an incident occurred at a bar at 8500 Dyer. Several officers made calls for the acting commander of the Northeast Regional Command, Lt. Frank Rodriguez, who decided that overworking overtime takes priority over his duties as a police officer. 

According to court records and records obtained on our behalf via FOIA request, this incident showed that Rodreguez had already worked over twenty-five hours when he was working COVID-19 overtime with Sgt. Adan Chavez (Chavez having once been charged with Official Oppression and evenly overlooked).

We have obtained the radio call between officers and dispatch when shots were being fired at 8500 Dyer, the old Sunrise Shopping Center.

The recording above captures just part of what was occurring in this area. At one point, you hear officers call to clear the air and that EMS cannot approach. This was an active shooter event, and the acting commander could not be bothered to appear. Again, Lt. Frank Rodriguez was too busy working overtime, which was then beyond the allowable limits placed on officers.

Then, a city-wide TAC alert was called out over the radio, and Rodriguez still did not respond.

“I am employed by a federal agency,” says an individual we spoke to who is familiar with Rodriguez and the events of that night. We approached the OOfficerto to offer relief so that he may have responded to this shooting, and he said relief was not warranted at that time. After listening to the audio, I’m afraid I have to disagree with the Officer’s decision to Officer on our site.”

Even More

Another issue to consider is that when an officer flagrantly violates rules and regulations that are in place to protect officers and the public, trust between the Police and the people erodes. 

We have been told that Lt. Frank Rodriguez will, from time to time, sleep in his office.

“He’s not working in there,” said an officer. “He will crash out, take these power naps, and then start bragging about 401k’s and ways to invest.

As we showed in one of many screenshots, Rodriguez works seventy-two (72) hours in a forty (40) workweek—thirty-two hours for TexDot. He will also leave shift to arrive at his TexDot job.

“We will see him leave about 2000 hrs (8:00 PM),” said one Officer, “so he can get to the Circle K at North Loop and Americas.”

Another officer said the same thing this evening: “He leaves early. He babysits from 2030, so he must burn out early.”

Uncomfortable Questions:

If a police force dictates that one may only work twenty-five hours per week, overtime, in a uniform and a marked unit, who oversees that those policies are followed? 

Why are people like Rodriguez seemingly exempt from such a policy?

What liability falls upon the City of El Paso, Command Staff, and Rodriguez for any possible duty failure – such as not responding to a city-wide alert because of overtime?

It’s a sad state of affairs when everyone in El Paso reads this, responds, “Well, that’s El Paso for you,” and then moves on. Why does it take something tragic, like a death at the hands of an officer or a death caused by an officer’s failure to act, before change happens?

Several officers told us that after our original article ran, Rodriguez shared the piece with others while challenging those against him to a boxing match in the parking lot. 

It is time for the El Paso Police Department to take a hard, long look in the mirror and clean the house before it’s too late.