Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham said he has sought to hold his department to high standards and to impose discipline when he finds officers fail to uphold them.

Since taking command of the 750-member force in February 2015, Chief Durham has fired, forced the resignation of or terminated 19 officers for serious infractions, including five officers this year.

Those actions, he said, “I do not take lightly.”

He said the number doesn’t include dozens of other police officers who quietly have been suspended, received reprimands or been required to undergo counseling or take refresher training for breaking departmental rules and regulations.

In separate data, the department reported that 22 officers served suspensions in 2017 alone.

During a meeting with two reporters last Friday, Chief Durham said he believes in holding department members “accountable” for operating with integrity given the authority with which they have been vested and the need to maintain public trust.

And he noted that he has gone far beyond most departments in transparency.

Under an agreement reached last year with groups including the Legal Aid Justice Center, the department regularly posts updated statistics online that show the number of complaints filed and the results of internal investigations.

That’s why Chief Durham expressed frustration at seeing residents use Facebook to spread information about police that cannot stand up to scrutiny.

He cited the case of Duron L. Chavis as a prime example.

In the meeting, Chief Durham showed police dashboard and body-worn camera footage that dispute Mr. Chavis’ claims in a Facebook post and in a Free Press report that he was subjected to a traffic stop Aug. 2 solely because an officer alleged he “smelled marijuana.”

The Free Press included Mr. Chavis’ claim in an article published in the Aug. 9-11 edition about police employing questionable claims of smelling marijuana to conduct warrantless searches of people, cars and possibly homes.

The department offered a “no comment” response when asked about Mr. Chavis’ claim for the article.

Mr. Chavis, who works for Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden and is well known for his community activism and his work in promoting healthy eating and gardening, stated in a Facebook post that the officer told him “that he pulled me cuz he smelled marijuana. From his car. With his windows up. While both cars were in motion.”

During a Free Press interview for the article, Mr. Chavis said the “smell of marijuana” was the only justification given by police for the stop and that he was not asked about other traffic violations. Mr. Chavis also said police let him go after he told them he did not use marijuana nor did he have it in the car.

Mr. Chavis did not mention in the interview or on Facebook that this was at least the fourth time this year that he has been stopped by police for driving a vehicle with an invalid inspection sticker or expired registration decals, according to court records, or that a police record check during the stop showed his driver’s license had been suspended, possibly since March.

Court records show that Mr. Chavis was stopped two additional times in Richmond and once in Henrico County since February. According to the records, he was convicted in April in Richmond and Henrico County General District Court of driving with a suspended license and expired vehicle registration. His next court date is in mid-October for a May traffic stop in the city.

Mr. Chavis also incorrectly stated that the Aug. 2 stop involved two city police officers. Police camera footage confirms Chief Durham’s disclosure that a State Police trooper and a city officer stopped Mr. Chavis.

They have since been identified as Trooper C.G. McKenna and Richmond Police Officer Jonathan Bloom. They were riding together in the trooper’s car because they were part of the Weapons Enforcement Blitz in which state officers and city officers are teamed to go after illegal weapons, Chief Durham said.

The city Police Department noted that legitimate traffic stops are one way that WEB officers turn up illegal guns or other contraband.

In response to a Free Press query last week, State Police issued the following statement: “Trooper McKenna initiated the traffic stop because he observed the vehicle’s inspection sticker was invalid and registration decals were expired for more than a year.”

The statement also rebutted Mr. Chavis’ claim that marijuana was the reason for stop.

“The trooper asked of the driver — which is the trooper’s standard protocol — if (Mr. Chavis) had any drugs, guns or weapons or anything else in the vehicle that the trooper should know about.”

Some of the conversation between Trooper McKenna and Mr. Chavis was picked up by the body-worn camera of Officer Bloom, who stayed on the passenger side of the vehicle but did not speak. Though the audio is often muffled and inaudible, Trooper McKenna can be heard questioning Mr. Chavis about his suspended license and Mr. Chavis telling the trooper about his financial problems and the need to drive to keep his job.

On the tape, Mr. Chavis tells Trooper McKenna that he is to appear in court Aug. 24 to apply for a restricted license to drive for work purposes, though the court record does not support that claim. Mr. Chavis was approved for a restricted license in March in Henrico County, but it apparently has been put on hold, according to records, because of unpaid fines and fees.

Trooper McKenna gives Mr. Chavis a break, telling Mr. Chavis that he will not issue a ticket. But he warns Mr. Chavis on the video that the vehicle would be confiscated if the trooper comes across Mr. Chavis driving again without an up-to-date inspection sticker, proper registration and a valid license.

On the tape, Mr. Chavis thanks the trooper. But according to Facebook time stamps, a few minutes later Mr. Chavis begins posting on social media that the stop was because of the “smell of marijuana.”

The Free Press contacted Mr. Chavis. Asked about camera footage showing the faulty inspection sticker and outdated license plates, Mr. Chavis did not change his position.

He responded: “The officer pulled me over saying he smelled marijuana with his hand on his holster, and he never said anything about my tags until he got in front of the car. He said he pulled me cuz he smelled marijuana and that is what prompted the stop.”

Asked if he had any credible evidence that Richmond officers are abusing the claim of “I smell marijuana” to conduct searches, Chief Durham said reports he has seen indicate that officers are properly making that claim.