Ohio sheriff’s chief apologizes for ‘won’t help Democrats’ post, blames sleeping pills | CNN

Springfield, Ohio
AP
–

An Ohio sheriff’s patrol officer who announced on Facebook that he would not help Democrats and would require proof of who a person voted for before giving them help has apologized, blaming prescription sleep aids for causing his “out” actions.

Lt. John Rodgers, a 20-year veteran of the sheriff’s office in Clark County, where Springfield is the county seat, made the statements in several posts on Facebook, WHIO-TV reported.

“I’m sorry. If you support the Democrat Party I can’t help you,” Rodgers reportedly wrote in one post. Another said: “The problem is that I know which of you support the Democratic Party and I will not help you survive the end of days.”

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

“We’ve been in this fight for the last few months, with attacks on the Haitian community and other immigrants, and we’re defending human rights and we’re not supporting behavior to the contrary,” said Mike Young, the district’s chief deputy. . , said the Springfield News-Sun.

“I will not go back in time and remove that post; the lieutenant did the job and got the consequences for it. ”

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, and his running mate J.D. Vance, drew national attention to Springfield with false claims – some made during televised presidential debates – that the city’s immigrants In Haiti they ate people’s dogs and cats. Springfield is in southwest Ohio between Columbus and Dayton.

Clark County Elections Director Jason Baker said Rodgers was not scheduled to be at the county election board Tuesday night, but the sheriff’s office is planning to send additional officers there to provide security during the count. of elections.

“I think the public should still be safe, with the Clark County sheriff’s department and the Springfield Police Department on duty,” he told The Associated Press. “We are all fighting for the same outcome, which is to have a day of peace.”

A statement from the sheriff’s office said the actions do not reflect the mission and values ​​of the office.

“It is understood that while these comments are grossly inaccurate, they in no way reflect the Clark County Office’s services to our entire community,” the statement said.

“The public has the right to be offended by the actions of Lt. Rodgers and he, along with the Sheriff’s Office as a whole, will have to work even harder to restore the trust of the members of our community.”

Rodgers responded to the reprimand formally, writing in a letter in his personnel file that he had no recollection of making the announcements or taking them down, and was alerted when a colleague asked if he was still alive. well, reports the Springfield News-Sun. Rodgers wrote that he did not find them on his page when he searched for them and the first time he saw them was during a meeting with a branch official.

Rodgers says he sometimes takes a prescribed sleep aid that can cause him to send “good” texts, phone calls or other forms of communication as side effects. The lieutenant said that as soon as he heard about the messages on Tuesday, he closed his Facebook account and stopped taking his medication, the newspaper reported.

Clark isn’t the only Ohio county dealing with controversial statements made by law enforcement officials on social media.

The United States Department of Justice’s election monitoring operation is located in Portage County, in northeast Ohio, to ensure that the county is following voting rights laws during early and regular voting. Election Day.

That’s after Portage County Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski, a Republican, was charged last month with voter intimidation. Zuchowski, who is seeking re-election, posted on social media that people with Kamala Harris’ yard signs should write down their addresses so that immigrants can be sent to live with them if the Democrat wins. the president.

After comments, the Portage County Board of Elections voted to stop using sheriff’s deputies for election security this year.

Asked at a press conference Monday about how the two cases could affect voters’ sense of security, Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose said some law enforcement officials — especially while running for office – sometimes they can give the impression of “misperceived.” .”

“But that, in any way, does not affect the sworn ministers who serve them,” he said. “Those are dedicated people who are first and foremost women of the law. They’re sworn to do this. They put their lives on the line to do this, and I’m sure they take that job seriously.”