The Pine Needle (Silsbee, Tex.), Vol. 4, No. 34, Ed. 1 Thursday, August 24, 1967 Page: 4 of 8
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PAGE FOUR
THE PINE NEEDLE
AUGUST 24, 1967
What The Evidence Proved County
To Help His Uncle --- Sheriff Ov
1. He Issued This Defense
To Radio Station KTRM
Below is reprinted a press re-
lease that County Attorney D-
wayne Overstreet had typed by an
employee of KTRM Radio in
Beaumont, Texas, to be read o-
ver radio in defense of Sheriff
Henry Overstreet, his uncle. Co-
unty Attorney Dwayne Overstreet
had Sheriff Overstreet sign the
statement, after it was typed--
according to the statement of
Gordon Baxter over KTRM Radio.
County Attorney Dwayne Over-
street admitted on the witness
stand that he ahd gone with Sher-
iff Overstreet so that the denial
over the radio would be done
properly. The County Attorney
admitted that at the time the
press release was prepared, he
had made no investigation of
whether or not the accusations of
Elmer Brown were true. County
Attorney Overstreet said that he
only knew that a letter had been
read over KTRM Radio against
Sheriff Overstreet and that he and
Sheriff Overstreet went down to
Beaumont to deny the charges.
County Attorney Overstreet al-
so testified that he wrote the re-
lease saying that there would be
a Grand Jury investigation. Under
oath the County Attorney admit-
ted that just as soon as he and
Sheriff Overstreet returned from
KTRM, County Attorney Over-
street. told the District Attorney
about the Grand Jury investigation
that he had announced.
The County Attorney admitted
thathedidact in the KTRM mat-
ter to defend and clear Sheriff
Overstreet--this admission was on
cross-examination.
Houston Thompson critized the
County Attorney taking part in
Grand Jury investigation where
his uncle, Sheriff Overstreet, was
under investigation. At first Co-
unty Attorney Overstreet said it
was untrue that he had ever tried
to protect Sheriff Overstreet at
any time. On cross-examination
County Attorney Overstreet back-
tracked and said, "I did not do
anything to protect Sheriff Over-
street after the Elmer Brown in-
vestigation started. It was almost
thirty minutes after before the
County Attorney backtracked a-
gain—on cross-examination.
What Overstreet
Complains About
STATEMENT BY: HENRY OVERSTREET,
SHERIFF OF HARDIN COUNTY, IN REF-
ERENCE TO LETTER DELIVERED TO
GORDON BAXTER, AUGUST 9, 1966, BY
LEON L. WILLIAMS, Purporting to rep-
resent ELMER BROWN, with reference to
mistreatment received in the Sheriff's Dep-
artment of Hardin County. Each and every
statement is denied and the same are not
true in whole or in part. The Grand Jury
of Hardin County will investigate the state-
ment to determine the purpose of same be-
ing made on the air. Elmer Brown has
been in Hardin County jail more than one
time and probably about twelve times for
various offenses. He is currently being
investigated with reference to burglary at
the residence of an elderly woman, but at
no time has he been mistreated by the hands
of Hardin County Sheriff Department.
HENRY OVERSTREET, SHERIFF OF
HARDIN COUNTY
Key Dates In The Overstreet
Cover Up
August 9, 1966--County Attorney
Overstreet and Sheriff Overstreet
issue a statement over KTRM
Radio denying the accusations of
Elmer Brown, in whole and in
part. See story on this page.
August 11, 1966--Sheriff Over-
street calls a meeting with Hous-
ton Thompson and six other per-
sons to present his case on the
Elmer Brown accusations. The
meeting called by Sheriff Over-
stxeet was held in Beat mont. None
ofthe seven people at that meet-
ing have yet testified in Court a-
bout the meeting. The facts of
that meeting will reveal many
new things about the Overstreet
cover-up of the Elmer Brown in-
vestigation.
August 15, 1966-- The Hardin
County Grand Jury meet for the
first time to investigate the ac-
cusations against Sheriff Over-
street. Citizens with picket signs
appeared at the courthouse and a
picture of the event was publish-
ed in the Pine Needle.
Two days later- -County Attoreny
Overstreet tells Houston Thompson
and several others the position of
the Sheriff and County Attorney
at a meeting held at the home
ofthe Democratic County Chair-
man. The meeting was called at
the request of Sheriff Overstreet
by the Democratic County Chair-
man. CountyAttorney Dwayne
OverstreeVmade a1 strong plea for
Houston Thompson to publish no
more about the Elmer Brown ac-
cusations—unless the County At-
torney was personally contacted.
The Grand Jury investigation was
supposedly going on. Many of the
witnesses at this meeting have
not yet testified.
September 12, 1966-- Citizens
of Chance-Loeb present a letter
to the Kountze News, which the
Kountze News agrees to publish
upon payment of $6.00. The let-
ter was in defense of the many
untrue statements about the El-
mer Brown accusations that had
appeared in the Kountze News.
PINE NEEDLE EDITORIAL; (Reprint from August 10, 1967, issue)
OVERSTREET IN THE GRAND JURY ROOM
Last year when the Hardin County Grand Jury was investigating
the Elmer Brown charges of brutality against the Sheriff of Hardin
County, County Attorney Dwayne Overstreet was in the Grand
Jury room during most of the investigation.
County Attorney Dwayne Overstreet is the nephew of Hardin
County Sheriff Henry Overstreet and is very close to him person-
ally and politically. His political future is closely tied to that of
the Sheriff's.
At the time of the Elmer Brown investigation the Pine Needle
pointed out that it seemed unfair to us to have a person so close
to the person whose conduct was under investigation leading that
investigation. After that notice, County Attorney announced that
he was going to leave the Grand Jury investigation to the District
Attorney. This he did for one meeting.
But on the day that the Grand Jury stated that they could find
no evidence of violation of Mr. Brown's rights, County Attorney
Dwayne Overstreet was closeted with the Grand Jury all day long.
During the current investigation of the tax office burglary Co-
unty Attorney Overstreet is in the Grand Jury room leading and
directing the investigation. We believe this to be poor practice if
the Grand Jury is trying to determine the truth of the charges fly-
ing back and forth.
In this investigation, the County Attorney is trying to protect
his favorite Uncle from exposure for the lack of a proper investi-
gation into the burglary. He sits in a strategic position and is able
to nip- in the bud any trails that lead to the conclusion of mis-
conduct on the part of die Sheriff’s Department.
The laws of Texas make Grand Jury proceedings secret so as to
enable a better investigation. But in Hardin County, the leading
strategist far Sheriff Overstreet is able to know all the details of
of accusations levied at the Sheriff when they are made.
We believe the County Attorney’s presence discourages private
citizens is going before die Grand Jury to report possible law vio-
lations on the part of the Sheriff of Hardin County.
The Pine Needle protests the presence of kinsmen of the accused
being privy to*the Grand Jury investigation. Clarence McNeely
was not afforded such special treatment, and we do not think
Sheriff Overstreet should be so treated.
2. He Secured A
90-Day Moratorium
During the latter part of Aug-
ust, 1966, County Attorney Dw-
ayne Overstreet represented his
Uncle Henry Overstreet at a
meeting at Haskel Wilson’s home
north of Kountze. This was a
political meeting designed to
heal the split between Sheriff
Overstreet and the Pine Needle
because of this newspaper's re-
fusal to support the Sheriff in the
Elmer Brown brutality charges.
After a lengthy political discus-
sion, the County Attorney secur-
ed a 90-day moratorium on pub-
licity in the Elmer Brown case.
The Pine Needle agreed not to
publish any block-buster in the
Elmer Brown case without first
discussing the matter with Coun-
ty Attorney Dwayne Overstreet.
This was a move on the part
of the County Attorney to defend
and protect his Uncle, politically.
County Attorney Dwayne Over-
street managed- to get the Koun-
tze News to refuse to publish the
letter.
September 19, 1966--The Grand
Jury of Hardin County "No-Billed”
Sheriff Henry Overstreet.
November 17, 1966-- The Pine
Needle analyzes the November
elections in which Republican
Tower defeated the Sheriff’s and
County Attorney’s candidate Carr
in Hardin County, as well as the
state. On the front page of the
Pine Needle was a cartoon with
the caption, "Who sez a cattle
prod does not cause scars?” Sh-
eriff Overstreet and County At-
torney Overstreet were not made
happy by the cartoon.
November 23. 1966-- Houston
Thompson was physically attack-
ed just outside the jail at the co-
urthouse in Kountze by a friend
of Sheriff Overstreet.
AND MORE--
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Barrington, Peggy. The Pine Needle (Silsbee, Tex.), Vol. 4, No. 34, Ed. 1 Thursday, August 24, 1967, newspaper, August 24, 1967; Silsbee , Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth662741/m1/4/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Lamar University.