The former president of Dallas’ largest police union has left the Police Department while on administrative leave during an investigation into his involvement in a fatal off-duty crash in March.
Jaime Castro, a 27-year officer, is ineligible for rehire because he was the subject of an ongoing internal affairs investigation, a police spokesperson said Tuesday.
Allison Hudson, the police spokesperson, declined to answer a list of questions about Castro’s departure, saying the internal affairs investigation would continue under state rules governing officers who leave while under investigation.
Castro, who held the rank of senior corporal, remained on duty until November, when department leadership placed him on administrative leave as part of the internal inquiry. Department records reviewed by The Dallas Morning News listed the rationale as “Grand Jury referral for Class A Misdemeanor.”
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Neither Castro nor his attorney, John Snider, responded to requests for comment.
The departure comes weeks after the Dallas Police Association’s membership voted in a new president. Castro, who was on leave at the time of the election, ran unsuccessfully to remain in the top spot. Sgt. Sean Pease was sworn in as president at the association’s board meeting Tuesday.
Castro’s case stems from a March 15 multivehicle crash in northwest Dallas that killed a pedestrian, Atianna Washington, 25, who was trying to cross a roadway. The crash set off inquiries into what happened and how responding officers investigated it.
An incident report written by a responding officer listed Castro, then the union’s president, as a passenger in one of the vehicles.
Department records reviewed by The Dallas Morning News show Officer Evan Muller and another responder, Officer Robert Wilcox Jr., were placed on administrative leave while the department investigated an allegation they had failed to properly investigate the crash.
Muller’s report states the vehicle Castro was in had two other occupants and the area where Washington was struck had no dedicated crosswalk and “very little to no” lighting.
A toxicology analysis found Washington was intoxicated with alcohol and drugs, according to a May supplement to the report that does not specify the degree of intoxication or which drugs were found. It lists the findings as “contributing factors” in the crash.
Police officials have declined to say whether Muller and Wilcox faced disciplinary action and if they have returned to duty. The two remained on leave until at least Aug. 15, according to department records.
An attorney for Washington’s family was not available for comment Tuesday.
Castro, 52, joined the department in 1998 and was last assigned to the department’s alarm unit, which is housed in the office of the police chief. The association membership elected him president in January 2024. Before then, he had served on the union’s executive board since 2016.