An Ohio sheriff’s patrol commander who declared on Fb that he wouldn’t assist Democrats and would require proof of who an individual voted for earlier than offering them assist has apologized, blaming prescribed sleep aids for inflicting his “out of character” actions.
Lt. John Rodgers, a 20-year sheriff’s veteran in Clark County, the place Springfield is the county seat, made the statements in a number of posts on Fb, WHIO-TV reported. In a single publish, he reportedly wrote: “I’m sorry. In case you assist the Democrat Get together I can’t enable you.” One other stated: “The issue is that I do know which of you helps the Democratic Get together and I can’t enable you survive the top of days.”
The sheriff’s workplace stated Rodgers, who has commanded the division’s street patrol, would stay on responsibility, with a written reprimand for violating the division’s social media coverage.
Clark County has been within the highlight since Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump amplified false claims that Haitian immigrants in Springfield had been consuming folks’s pet canine and cats.
A sheriff’s assertion stated the posts don’t replicate the workplace’s mission and values.
“It’s understood that whereas these feedback are extremely inappropriate, they in no means replicate the Clark County Sheriff’s Workplace supply of service to ALL our neighborhood,” the assertion stated. “The neighborhood has a proper to be upset over the actions of Lt. Rodgers and he, in addition to the Sheriff’s Workplace generally, should work even more durable to replenish the belief of members of our neighborhood.”
Rodgers formally responded to the reprimand, writing in a letter in his personnel file that he doesn’t recall writing the posts or taking them down, and was alerted to them when a coworker requested if he was OK, the Springfield Information-Solar reported. Rodgers wrote that he didn’t discover them on his web page when he looked for them and that the primary time he noticed them was throughout a gathering with a division official.
Rodgers stated he typically takes a prescribed sleep assist that may trigger him to ship “out of character” texts, cellphone calls or different types of communication as a facet impact. The lieutenant stated that as quickly as he discovered of the messages on Tuesday, he deactivated his Fb account and stopped taking the medicine, the newspaper reported.
“We’ve been on this battle over the previous few months, with the assaults on the Haitian neighborhood and different immigrants, and we shield folks’s rights and we don’t assist the conduct on the contrary,” Mike Younger, the county’s chief deputy, informed the newspaper. “I can’t return in time and take that publish away; the lieutenant made the publish and he has obtained penalties for that.”
Clark isn’t the one Ohio county coping with controversial statements made by legislation enforcement officers on social media.
The U.S. Justice Division stated its election monitoring efforts will embrace Portage County, the place a sheriff was accused of intimidating voters final month, to verify the county complies with federal voting rights legal guidelines throughout early voting and on Election Day.
The division’s announcement got here after Republican Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski posted on social media that folks with Kamala Harris yard indicators ought to have their addresses written down in order that immigrants will be despatched to reside with them if the Democrat wins the presidency.
