ARLINGTON, Texas — A longtime officer for the Arlington Police Department is facing one count of retaliation, a third-degree felony in Texas, in connection to a criminal case involving her husband in which three pets died in his care.
Officer Stacie Brown was indicted by a Tarrant County grand jury on Dec. 11. According to the Arlington Police Department; Brown is now on leave pending the outcome of an administrative investigation by APD's internal affairs unit.
She turned herself into the Tarrant County Jail on Jan. 9 and bonded out shortly after that.
Ofc. Brown's attorney told WFAA Thursday afternoon that Brown has committed no offense and that they have filed a demand for a speedy trial, expecting to have the case before a jury as soon as possible.
"The department takes this matter seriously and is cooperating with the DA's Office," a spokesperson wrote in an email.
Brown has been with the department for 18 years and was a founding member of APD's DWI unit. In 2015, WFAA even joined her on a ride-along at night, where she performed sobriety tests and even arrested someone for DWI. Brown told WFAA that she quit teaching after ten years to become a DWI officer after her sister died in a drunk driving crash.
Her indictment stems from her husband's criminal case, which includes three counts of animal cruelty and evidence tampering.
Alan Brown is the owner of K-9 Direction, and each cruelty count is connected to a family pet that died in Brown's care dating back to 2021. WFAA did stories with all three of their owners in early August.
K-9 Direction is a training and boarding operation that Alan Brown started.
Stacie Brown's charges relate to allegations levied by Emeka and Masera Ndukwe, whose dog Brooklyn, a Bernadoodle, who died in Alan Brown's care while they were vacationing overseas. The couple's story went viral online, and other owners who shared similar pain came forward.
Stacie Brown's retaliation charge stems from a police report she filed against the Ndukwes following their post about Brooklyn that went viral that included Brown's name, her relationship to Alan Brown, their address where he operated K-9 Direction, and Stacie Brown's badge number.
The post read as a warning not to use Alan Brown's business.
A report filed by Stacie Brown said that the Ndukwes posted this with the intent to harm or threaten Brown on account of her service or status as a public servant. Alan and Stacie Brown later dropped the case.
Stacie Brown's indictment read that she "did intentionally or knowingly harm or threaten to harm (the Ndukwes) by an unlawful act, namely making a false police report to a peace officer, and the unlawful act was committed in retaliation for or on account of the status of Emeka Ndukwe as a person who has reported the occurrence of a crime."
Case background
The Ndukwes said they dropped off Brooklyn with Alan Brown in late June for several weeks while they honeymooned in Europe. The Ndukwes told WFAA they had a friend arrange to pick Brooklyn up when Alan Brown failed to update them on how he was doing.
But while arrangements were being made, Alan Brown told the Ndukwes that Brooklyn had died in her kennel while in his van. A report from a vet clinic said that Brooklyn was in Alan Brown's van with the A/C going in the heat while he was teaching training classes. The report further stated that the dog was unresponsive when Alan Brown returned to check on her.
The clinic ultimately kept Brooklyn's remains after Alan Brown tried reviving her, the Ndukwes said. But then the Ndukwes said Alan Brown eventually admitted that Brooklyn had been dead for several days -- possibly as many as seven -- when they tried pulling her out of K-9 Direction.
In a text message provided to WFAA, Alan Brown replied to the Ndukwes that he didn't reach out sooner to "…preserve as much of your honeymoon & Paris memories as possible for future anniversaries." The couple said they were furious when they found out and returned to the U.S. immediately. Because Alan Brown didn't truthfully inform them of Brooklyn's sudden death, the couple said, they could not order a necropsy in time to determine a cause of death.
A grand jury found merit in the Ndukwe's claims and added that Alan Brown failed to communicate with them for them to request a necropsy to determine how Brooklyn died. That line was filed under the evidence tampering accusations in the indictment.
Alan Brown's attorney, James Luster, sent the following statement to WFAA regarding his charges last year:
"Alan Brown loves animals and has devoted decades to helping owners better care for their dogs. Our hearts go out to those who are grieving the loss of a beloved pet. These misguided allegations are driven by heartache. We look forward to helping investigators more fully understand the situation and setting the record straight."