Ohio sheriff's lieutenant who said he won't help Democrats deletes posts, apologizes
John Rodgers, a lieutenant with the Clark County Sheriff's Office in Springfield, posted on Facebook that he would not help Democrats. He has since said he's sorry and blamed the posts on medication.
A sheriff's office in Springfield, Ohio is facing backlash after a lieutenant said on Facebook that he would not help Democrats.
Lt. John Rodgers of the Clark County Sheriff's Office posted on Facebook recently that he wanted proof of whom someone was voting for before helping them, according to the Springfield News-Sun.
"I am sorry. If you support the Democrat Party I will not help you," one of Rodgers' since-deleted posts read, according to local station WHIO-TV. Another post stated "The problem is that I know which of you supports the Democratic Party and I will not help you survive the end of days."
Rodgers has since deleted his Facebook account and apologized for his comments.
The sheriff's office did not immediately reply to Paste BN's request for comment Monday.
Rodgers blames sleep medication for 'out of character' claim
Rodgers told the Springfield News-Sun that he takes medication to help him sleep and that causes him to make "out of character" phone calls, texts and statements.
An internal investigative file revealed that he insisted his comment was a "documented side-effect" of a prescribed sleep aids, WHIO-TV reported.
"I do not remember writing these posts or deleting any posts," Rodgers wrote to supervisors, according to the station.
Rodgers has apologized to the Clark County community, his coworkers and his family. He also vowed to stop taking the sleep medication.
“I know I cannot apologize enough, and my apologies may seem empty, but I will continue to apologize as long as necessary,” Rodgers wrote in a letter he shared with WHIO-TV. "I know it will be difficult for the public to trust me, but I will do everything in my power to start mending that trust. I apologize from the bottom of my heart and want to ensure our community I will always serve to the best of my ability and strive to do better. I want to ensure the citizens in our community that I have always treated everyone with dignity and respect no matter our differences and will strive to show them I can do better."
Sheriff's office calls Rodger's posts 'highly inappropriate'
The Clark County Sheriff's Office has called Rodgers' posts "highly inappropriate," WHIO-TV reported, and say that they don't reflect the office's "delivery of service to ALL our community and does not reflect the mission and values of the sheriff’s office."
"The community has a right to be upset over the actions of Lt. Rodgers and he, as well as the sheriff’s office in general, will have to work even harder to replenish the trust of members of our community," the sheriff's office said in a statement sent to WHIO-TV.
The sheriff’s office is located in Springfield, Ohio, which garnered national attention after former President Donald Trump made unfounded claims that Haitian migrants in the city are stealing and eating pets during his debate with Vice President Kamala Harris.
In a News Nation interview last month, Trump said he would deport Haitian migrants in Springfield who have legal residency if elected.
"Springfield is such a beautiful place. Have you seen what's happened to it? It's been overrun. You can't do that to people. They have to be removed," Trump told the outlet.
Springfield officials have refuted the depiction of the city.
Sheriff tells residents to 'write down' Harris supporter addresses in September
Rodgers' comments come two months after an Ohio county sheriff took to social media to seemingly request the addresses of homes with front yard signs supporting Harris.
In a Sept. 13 Facebook post, Portage County Sheriff Bruce D. Zuchowski said what he would do if Harris defeats Trump in the presidential election.
"When people ask me...What's gonna happen if the Flip - Flopping, Laughing Hyena Wins?? I say...write down all the addresses of the people who had her signs in their yards," Zuchowski wrote in the Facebook post. "Sooo...when the Illegal human 'Locust' (which she supports!) Need places to live...We'll already have the addresses of their New families...who supported their arrival!"
While Zuchowski, a Republican who is up for reelection on Tuesday, did not make any overt threats in the post, some residents voiced concerns over a sheriff listing addresses based on political beliefs.
"That sort of doxxing, sanctioned by a gun-toting man with a badge, is downright scary," Kent resident Bob Springer wrote in a September complaint he filed with the federal Department of Justice.
Contributing: Jonathan Limehouse, Paste BN and Amanda Garrett, Akron Beacon Journal