Lubbock has picked Seth Herman, Midland’s police chief since 2018, as its top choice to lead the LPD. On paper, he’s got nearly three decades of experience across patrol, SWAT, narcotics, and administration. In practice, he’s trailed by enough controversies to fill a Netflix docuseries.
In Midland, Herman was tangled up in a lawsuit tied to bungled sexual assault reporting at private schools, faced backlash for officers pointing guns at a young Black man over a stop sign, and made tone-deaf comments about how he might have handled it with “a broken window and somebody pulled out of a car.” He’s also had to explain rising homicide rates by blaming “an unsecured border and an appetite for sedation,” which sounds more like a campaign slogan than a crime strategy.
Of course, Lubbock PD has its own laundry list of PR nightmares—from an officer who dragged a woman through a park by her hair, to cops beating a homeless man on camera, to a deputy chief pleading guilty after pointing a gun at his girlfriend. So Herman may actually fit right in.
City officials are spinning this as a chance to “build on positive momentum,” citing recent drops in violent and property crime. Herman’s hire still needs city council approval, but let’s be honest—this is Lubbock. The bar isn’t so much high as it is underground.
With Lubbock’s track record and Herman’s résumé, maybe the new police HQ should just come pre-installed with a crisis PR office.
https://radio.kttz.org/2024-05-08/lubbock-pd-chief-finalist-no-stranger-to-controversy-growing-pains
