A Florida sheriff said he will “deputize” lawful gun owning citizens in his county for help if protests become violent.
What We Know:
- In a video message posted to Facebook, Clay County Sheriff Darryl Daniels stated “If you threaten to come to Clay County and think for one second that we’ll bend our backs for you, you’re sadly mistaken.” Sheriff Daniels calls his message “not a threat but a warning” to anyone that comes to his county intending to do anything but protest peacefully.
- The message comes as many protests, sparked by the killing of George Floyd, have happened all over the country since late May.
- In the early days of the unrest, some demonstrations lead to looting and property damage, but the majority of the demonstrations were peaceful. Officials in different parts of the US hinted that the violence may have been instigated by outside groups who infiltrated the protests with an ulterior motive.
- In the video the sheriff explained the relationship between the police and community are “are great and not strained”. “Look folks don’t fall victim to subjecting yourself to this conversation that law enforcement is bad. That law enforcement is the enemy of the citizens that were sworn to protect and serve,” Daniels said.
- The sheriff also said officers took an oath to protect and defend the Constitution, adding “we end that (oath) with, ‘so help me God’. But God is absent from the media’s message or Black Lives Matter or any other group out there that’s making themselves a spectacle”.
- Harold Rutledge, who will be challenging Daniels in the elections on November 3rd, told CNN affiliate WJXT, the message seemed like the sheriff “challenged rioters and looters to come to Clay County and cause mayhem”.
- “Part of the problem in policing is that some officers need more training in how to interact with all people and all situations, including how to keep calm and how to de-escalate situations” said Rutledge. “Threatening to ‘make special deputies of every lawful gun owner in this county and I’ll deputize them’ is going to make the problem worse.”
At least three other candidates also on the ballot all condemned Daniels’ message.
