Centralia port commissioner source of new information in ongoing Murphy fallout

May 20-The source of the "additional information" cited in a potential impeachment disclosure (PID) on former police Sgt. Tracy Murphy is a Port of Centralia commissioner.

Ally Pickard, the former political cartoonist, is the latest public figure revealed in the many government files surrounding Murphy's firing and its aftermath.

Documents obtained this week by The Chronicle through a public records request included confirmation of Pickard's involvement and details she provided to Centralia police.

The PID, known informally as a Brady letter, is used to disclose to a criminal defendant information about a government witness that may be exculpatory or impeaching.

Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer issued the letter on May 13.

Murphy was fired from the Centralia Police Department on April 29. His termination followed an administrative investigation regarding allegations that Murphy had implicated Lewis County Sheriff Rob Snaza and prominent county Republicans in a cocaine operation.

The original allegations, made through a complaint with the Washington state Criminal Justice Training Commission (CJTC), were ultimately not sustained by the investigator.

The investigator did conclude, however, that Murphy made false statements while omitting material information during interviews conducted during the internal investigation.

Pickard's statement is relevant to both the CJTC complaint and the internal investigation, in that it corroborates the anonymous complainant's fear that Murphy had improperly disclosed information beyond the appropriate channels of the Centralia Police Department.

In the complaint, the anonymous filer expressed concern that Murphy is "knowingly spreading false information for political purposes," or else the allegations "have some basis in fact," and Murphy "is not reporting them through appropriate legal or professional channels and may instead be using this information to influence or gain leverage in an upcoming election."

Murphy, a 30-year law enforcement veteran, was, and still is, actively campaigning to become the next Lewis County sheriff.

Centralia Police Chief Andy Caldwell, in a May 7 memorandum, said he was contacted by Pickard that same day with information relevant to the already closed internal investigation.

Pickard subsequently gave a recorded statement and provided screenshots of Facebook Messenger conversations she had with Murphy's spouse in 2024 and 2025.

"This supplemental evidence is directly relevant to the sustained findings of providing false statements, making misleading statements, and omitting material facts during the internal investigation," Caldwell said in the memorandum.

In the recorded interview, Caldwell said he first spoke with Pickard after a May 5 Centralia City Council meeting. During that brief conversation, Pickard mentioned having a "somewhat similar experience" related to the allegations, according to Caldwell.

Caldwell said he contacted Pickard the following day.

The Messenger screenshots don't explicitly reference allegations that Snaza protected drug dealers, a key element related to the original CJTC complaint, which said Murphy made "repeated statements" claiming Snaza "acquires and protects cocaine dealers."

Though Murphy initially denied making any such statements during the internal investigation, he later admitted in a second interview to discussing the sheriff's possible protection of individuals involved in drug trafficking.

Those discussions, Murphy maintained, were held solely between members of the Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team (JNET), which Murphy led at the time.

The now inactive unit was composed of officers from the Centralia Police Department, the Chehalis Police Department, the Washington state Department of Corrections and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Murphy told The Chronicle on April 30 that the hangup pertained to a non-disclosure agreement he'd signed with the DEA prohibiting him from disclosing information without authorization.

Murphy, in his role with JNET, also operated as a deputized DEA agent.

In Pickard's May 7 interview, the port commissioner described two conversations she'd had with Murphy's spouse - one in person and one on the phone - that substantiated the claim that Murphy had improperly disclosed allegations against Snaza by talking outside of JNET.

During the phone call, which Pickard said occurred in late summer 2024, Murphy "chimed in" to affirm that what his spouse had told Pickard regarding Snaza was true.

Pickard then described an event she attended in the fall of 2024 where Murphy's spouse spoke with her and reiterated "again and again how corrupt Snaza is and how he needs to get out of office, and you know, her husband is the answer and the solution."

"I know specifically she said 'protecting drug dealers.' I do, I do remember her saying that," Pickard said in the interview.

According to Pickard, Murphy introduced himself to her during the event and reaffirmed that everything his spouse had told her was true.

"And so, it was clear to me all along that this information was coming through (Murphy's spouse) from Tracy," Pickard said.

In his memorandum, Caldwell said the Messenger conversation Pickard provided was "mostly about Sheriff Snaza," and "focused on destroying Sheriff Snaza's character."

"Though the Messenger conversation does not specifically mention the sheriff protecting drug dealers, it does contain other information similar to what Tracy provided in his March 23 statement and supports the context of the statement Pickard provided," Caldwell said.

The chief noted in the memorandum that Pickard "was not one of the anonymous complainants in the initial complaint."

In her interview, Pickard talked about reading various reports regarding the internal investigation, which led to her speaking to Caldwell.

"And when I read the transcripts, and I read that Tracy clearly said he did not ever talk about these sort of allegations outside of JNET, I knew that that was a lie," Pickard said.

Pickard said she felt she had "no choice but to come forward," and described her conversations with Murphy's spouse as gossip.

"And not just gossip, but you know, allegations and insider information and more than that," Pickard said.

Caldwell concluded in the memorandum, "Based on the totality of what was presented from the beginning of this investigation and information provided by Pickard, Tracy Murphy's statement on March 23 that he did not discuss information connecting Sheriff Snaza to any drug activity outside of JNET or the Centralia Police Department is another false and misleading statement."

In the PID, Meyer referenced the information provided by Pickard. The prosecutor said his office obtained the files on May 8 after requesting additional information on May 7 related to audio recordings of interviews conducted during the internal investigation.

In his conclusion, Meyer said it was "clear the actions of former Sgt. Murphy" constituted "material that must be disclosed pursuant to the obligations placed upon this Office by the applicable laws, rules, and policies."

"However, this should not be construed as any type of official determination by this office as to the relevance or admissibility of any of the information," Meyer said. "Any attempt to use this information in any fashion at a hearing or trial may be the subject of pre-trial litigation in the appropriate jurisdiction."

At the time of Murphy's firing, the CJTC complaint was still in the "intake review" stage, and a review team had yet to recommend whether to pursue a certification investigation or close the case.

The state agency provides basic law enforcement training, certifies officers and investigates potential misconduct leading to possible decertification.

The original complainant remains anonymous.

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