Ohio sheriff’s lieutenant who said he ‘won’t help Democrats’ apologizes, blames drugs

An Ohio sheriff’s patrol commander who said on Facebook that he would not help Democrats and would require proof of who a person voted for before helping them has apologized, blaming prescribed sleeping pills for causing his “out of character” actions.

Lt. John Rogers, a 20-year veteran of the Clark County Sheriff’s Office, where Springfield is the administrative center of the county, made statements in several posts on Facebook, CBS affiliate WHIO-TV reported.. In one post, he reportedly wrote: “I’m so sorry. If you support the Democratic Party, I will not help you.” Another said, “The problem is, I know which of you support the Democratic Party, and I won’t help you get through the end of days.”

Another message said people would have to “show proof of who you voted for” if they asked Rogers for help, the station reported.

The sheriff’s office said Rogers, who commanded the department’s highway patrol, will remain on duty with a written reprimand for violating the department’s social media policy.

“I know I can’t apologize enough and my apology may seem empty, but I will continue to apologize as long as necessary,” Rogers said in the interview. statement obtained by WHIO-TV. “I know it will be difficult for the public to trust me, but I will do everything in my power to start rebuilding that trust. I apologize from the bottom of my heart and want to ensure that I will always serve our community to the best of my ability. my abilities and desire to achieve more. I want to assure the citizens of our community that I have always treated everyone with dignity and respect, regardless of our differences, and will strive to show them that I can do better.”

Clark County has been in the spotlight since Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stepped up his game. false statements that Haitian immigrants in Springfield ate domestic dogs and cats.

The sheriff’s statement said the posts do not reflect the mission and values ​​of the office.

“It is clear that while these comments are highly inappropriate, they are in no way a reflection of the Clark County Sheriff’s Office’s service delivery to our ENTIRE community,” the statement said. “The community has a right to be upset by Lt. Rogers’ actions, and he, like the Sheriff’s Office as a whole, will have to work even harder to restore the trust of our community members.”

Rogers formally responded to the reprimand by writing a letter in his personnel file saying he didn’t remember writing or deleting the messages and was warned about it when a co-worker asked if he was okay, the Springfield News-Sun reported. Rogers wrote that he didn’t find them on his page when he searched, and that he first saw them during a meeting with a department official.

Rogers said he sometimes takes prescribed sleeping pills, which as a side effect may cause him to send “uncharacteristic” text messages, phone calls or other forms of communication. The lieutenant said that as soon as he learned of the messages Tuesday, he deactivated his Facebook account and stopped taking his medication, the newspaper reported.

“We’ve been in this battle for the last several months, with attacks on the Haitian community and other immigrants, and we stand up for people’s rights and don’t support the opposite behavior,” Mike Young, the county’s chief deputy. , the newspaper said. “I can’t go back in time and take this post away; The lieutenant set up a post, and he suffered the consequences for it.”

Clark isn’t the only Ohio county facing conflicting statements from law enforcement officials on social media.

The U.S. Justice Department said its election monitoring efforts will include Portage County, where the sheriff was accused of voter intimidation last month, to ensure the county complies with federal voting rights laws during early voting and Election Day.

The department’s statement came after Republicans Sheriff Bruce ZuchowskI wrote on social media that people with Kamala Harris yard signs should write down their addresses so immigrants can be sent to live with them if a Democrat wins the presidency.