Indicted South Bend Police Officer Resigns 'With Great Disappointment and Regret'

by Leanne Tokars (ltokars@wsbt.com)

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Indicted South Bend Police Officer Resigns 'With Great Disappointment and Regret'

Cpl. Jamie Buford (center), the South Bend police officer who faces wire fraud and drug charges as part of a federal indictment, was released from jail Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2007. Thursday he resigned from the South Bend Police Department. (WSBT photo)

By Beth Boehne

Story Created: Oct 25, 2007 at 5:15 PM EST

Story Updated: Nov 4, 2007 at 10:19 PM EST

(WSBT) Cpl. Jamie Buford submitted his letter of resignation Thursday morning.

Buford and former St. Joseph County deputies Ryan Huston and Andrew Taghon bonded out of jail Wednesday night on federal drug and fraud charges. Taghon also faces charges for selling two stolen guns.

The county deputies were fired last year, but until he resigned, Buford was on administrative leave with pay.

South Bend Police Chief Tom Fautz said he started an internal investigation into Buford about six weeks ago, after he received some new information in the case.

That's why he called a special meeting with the Board of Public Safety — to request that Buford stop getting paid. But instead, Buford decided to resign.

It was a short meeting, with one vote by the Board of Public Safety, accepting the resignation of South Bend Police Cpl. Jamie Buford.

"The whole department has been shaken,” said Chief Fautz. “I'm sure the community has been shaken. These are very serious allegations."

In the letter, Buford says his resignation comes with great disappointment and regret. He says he is aware the department would be placing him on unpaid administrative leave.

To save his family from further stress and grief, he tells the board, “I will not make it any more difficult by trying to persuade you of why you should wait on any harsh decisions.”

To read the full letter of resignation, click on the link in the Related Content box.

Chief Fautz told us he's not surprised by Buford's resignation. He also responded to questions about why Buford was paid all this time — nearly $59,000 since put on administrative leave.

“First of all, I followed state law, but secondly, when the allegations were first brought forward, levels of involvement at that point known were different,” Chief Fautz said. “Cpl. Buford's involvement at that time was not clear, it was circumstantial."

Buford's letter goes on to say, "I feel very fortunate in all the good that I have been able to produce in my career."

But inside a federal courthouse Wednesday, federal prosecutors painted a different picture.

They say Buford helped Taghon and Huston sell stolen items and solicited another person to sell stolen drugs.

Federal prosecutors also claim Buford searched homes between 2002 and 2004 without warrants — searches in which federal prosecutors claim thousands of dollars went missing.

These three men held a variety of positions during their time as police officers. Taghon worked in the jail and on patrol. Huston also worked in the jail at one time and for a special operations section. Buford also worked on special operations as well as on the county Metro Homicide Unit for a short period of time.

Chief Fautz says his internal investigation will end now that Buford has resigned.

Buford, Taghon and Huston have all pleaded not guilty. If found guilty on all charges, Buford and Huston could face up to160 years in prison. Because of the added gun charges, Taghon could face up to 200 years.

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