LOUISIANA, Mo. — A former small-town Missouri police chief was arraigned on a second-degree murder charge, months after a man overdosed in his apartment.
When 24-year-old Gabriel Thone overdosed inside the home of Louisiana, Missouri, Police Chief William Jones, it sent shockwaves through the small town.
"It's just getting sad,” said Steve Henry. “The city needs to clean house."
"I was actually told by an attorney you know that you better be very careful with them,” said Ryan Jakab.
That's a perception interim Louisiana Police Chief Chris Heatherly is working to change by making uniforms, body cameras, and dash cams mandatory for all officers.
"I don't want to sound negative,” said Chris Heatherly. “I don't want to talk bad about anybody, but it's like we're starting over."
Since taking over the department, Heatherly said his number one goal has been regaining the trust of the community, but he said in order to do that he needs to answer questions about his own past.
“That's one reason why I hate crooked cops because I was a victim of that,” said Heatherly.
Former St. Clair Co. State's Attorney Brendan Kelly cleared Heatherly of any wrongdoing after an investigation into evidence tampering and a separate case where he shot a suspect while off duty.
"He's now the director of the Illinois State Police,” said Heatherly. “He was my reference."
While Heatherly understands not everyone in town will immediately buy in, he wants to make one thing clear.
"It's not the same Louisiana,” said Heatherly. “We're going to be a professional police department, and something that the Louisiana citizens can be proud of."
Chief Heatherly wants to add three officers to the department.
For more information on how you can apply click here.