CALDWELL, Idaho — Caldwell’s mayor-elect is facing scrutiny after a personal voice memo surfaced in which he discussed his intentions toward the city’s police chief, stating he planned to "fire his a**."
Mayor-elect Eric Phillips, who campaigned on transparency, acknowledged in the recording that "...everyone wants him gone and so do I."
Idaho News 6 confirmed the voice memo belongs to mayor-elect Phillips after matching his phone number with the phone number that mistakenly texted the audio to Carlos Hernández, a former candidate for Caldwell City Council.
WATCH: Carlos Hernández shares his thoughts after receiving the voice memo by mistake
Phillips spoke with Idaho News 6 the day after the election and told Caldwell neighborhood reporter Leslie Solis he would review all the facts before deciding whether to replace Caldwell Police Chief Rex Ingram. Ingram has been involved in several high-profile lawsuits that resulted in more than half a million dollars in payouts from the city’s insurance provider.
READ MORE | Investigation clears Caldwell Police Chief of misuse allegations
In the initial interview, Phillips said, “I have to get sworn in first … before decisions can be made,” adding that “people are gonna have to also make decisions themselves.”
But in the voice memo, Phillips described his public comments as “legalistic terms,” saying he wanted to avoid the risk of a wrongful-termination lawsuit. In the recording, he said he planned to “look at all the things and fire his a** anyways,” adding, “everyone wants him gone and so do I."
RELATED | Whistleblower sues Caldwell Police Department alleging misuse of public funds
He continued, saying he intended to “check all the boxes” to shield the city from litigation if he moved forward with firing Ingram.
Caldwell Police Chief Rex Ingram released a statement in response to the voice memo's release, saying, "In my opinion, the voice memo made by the Caldwell Mayor-Elect Eric Phillips, is troubling and speaks for itself. There is no excuse or amount of explanation that can temper the plain meaning of Mr. Phillips' voice memo or his follow-up statement he made to the media. Despite this, I will continue to lead the Caldwell Police Department to the best of my ability and look forward to working with Mr. Phillips as the Chief of Police."
In an interview with Caldwell Neighborhood Reporter Leslie Solis, former city council candidate Carlos Hernández, reflected on the moments he received the accidental voice memo.
"When I received this message, I was in shock. I had to actually listen to it a few times because how he was speaking was not how we ever communicated. And so, that took me by surprise." Hernández continued, "After evaluating what he had said, it turned into disappointment and, frankly, sadness, because I wanted to give Eric a chance."
Hear the full voice memo below —
Hernández added that predetermined calls to fire Chief Ingram could break trust in the Caldwell community. "When we look at these types of situations, it's important to understand that it's not necessarily the subject or who the person is. It's how that process needs to be followed, how we have laws in place that need to be followed."
Hernández told Idaho News 6 he still believes the mayor-elect "has the capability to do what is right," but said changes need to be made before Phillips takes the reins as mayor. "If this Eric Phillips, the one who sent me the voicemail, is the one who is going to be taking the mayoral seat, I do not believe that he should be in that position, and he should resign, because that is not the type of leader that Caldwell needs or Caldwell deserves."
Phillips is scheduled to be sworn in as mayor in January, replacing current Mayor Jarom Wagoner.
Senior Reporter Don Nelson and Caldwell Neighborhood Leslie Solis discuss the voice memo's contents
For Canyon County happenings, news, and more— join our Facebook Group: 2C Neighborhood News - Nampa, Caldwell, Middleton
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been, in part, converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.