Fast Facts:
In a letter she says she is relieving him from his duties as fire chief of Jericho. Payne is on crutches after allegedly being shot at the Jericho city hall during a scuffle with police about a speeding ticket. And it's a move some Jericho residents aren't happy with.
"Don did a lot of good things for the city of Jericho like keeping the kids out of trouble giving them something to do something to keep them active," said Earl Coleman.
Coleman is a volunteer firefighter in Jericho. And says if Don Payne isn't the fire chief, he won't be volunteering anymore. "She stand behind the police 100%, we stand behind the chief 100%," added Coleman.
Coleman isn't the only one. All of the other 18 volunteer firefighters say they are standing behind their former chief and will not volunteer anymore.
This leaves with city with out a fire department or police. Last week the police chief disbanded his force after an uproar in reaction to the shooting. This leaves the 174 residents of Jericho with out any protection.
We tried to contact the mayor and alderman today, but they were not available. Residents like Coleman think the disagreement could be solved if the mayor, police and fire departments all met and talked...something they haven't done yet. "We might have a change of heart, don't want to see nobody get burned up in no house," said Coleman.
Payne will not talk about what happened at city hall that night he got shot. But says he is well on his way to a full recovery.
- There are no firemen...and no police patrolling the streets of Jericho, Arkansas tonight.
- It's not because of budget cuts... But because of a disagreement that ended with a policeman shooting the fire chief.
- The issue has the town divided. Now they are looking to solve the dispute so they can be protected.
In a letter she says she is relieving him from his duties as fire chief of Jericho. Payne is on crutches after allegedly being shot at the Jericho city hall during a scuffle with police about a speeding ticket. And it's a move some Jericho residents aren't happy with.
"Don did a lot of good things for the city of Jericho like keeping the kids out of trouble giving them something to do something to keep them active," said Earl Coleman.
Coleman is a volunteer firefighter in Jericho. And says if Don Payne isn't the fire chief, he won't be volunteering anymore. "She stand behind the police 100%, we stand behind the chief 100%," added Coleman.
Coleman isn't the only one. All of the other 18 volunteer firefighters say they are standing behind their former chief and will not volunteer anymore.
This leaves with city with out a fire department or police. Last week the police chief disbanded his force after an uproar in reaction to the shooting. This leaves the 174 residents of Jericho with out any protection.
We tried to contact the mayor and alderman today, but they were not available. Residents like Coleman think the disagreement could be solved if the mayor, police and fire departments all met and talked...something they haven't done yet. "We might have a change of heart, don't want to see nobody get burned up in no house," said Coleman.
Payne will not talk about what happened at city hall that night he got shot. But says he is well on his way to a full recovery.
