DA's Office Closes Investigation Into Tarrant Regional Water District Without Filing Charges

Arlington TX

11 March, 2022

5:28 PM

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By Haley Samsel and Rachel Behrndt, Fort Worth Report March 11, 2022 Five months after receiving a criminal complaint, District Attorney Sharen Wilson has closed a grand jury investigation into the Tarrant Regional Water District's financial settlement with former general manager Jim Oliver. No charges have been filed in the case, said Anna Tinsley Williams, a spokeswoman for Wilson's office. The complaint was filed shortly after Oliver was paid $161,647.20 in exchange for dropping his threat of a lawsuit against the water district. He also received a $95,674.28 payment for his unused vacation time and a 401k contribution payout. Last summer, Oliver and his attorney, Jason Smith, complained that the water district board violated his constitutional rights by revoking an agreement between Oliver and former board president Jack Stevens that would have given Oliver more paid time off than he had earned. The paid time off was equivalent to an additional year's salary of more than $300,000, according to current board president Leah King. Wilson's office concluded there is a "low likelihood" of successfully prosecuting criminal charges related to violations investigated in the case, Wilson wrote in a March 2 letter obtained by the Fort Worth Report. To read the full article, click here. Fort Worth Report is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that produces factual, in-depth journalism about city and county government, schools, healthcare, business, and arts and culture in Tarrant County. Always free to read; subscribe to newsletters, read coverage or support our newsroom at fortworthreport.org.