The complaint states that the McCurtain County Sheriff’s Department has “a history of permitting its personnel to engage in unnecessary, unreasonable and excessive force on arrestees who pose no threat” and “the McCurtain County Sheriff (and thus McCurtain County) has a long, deep-seated history and unabated custom of excessive force.”
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The lawsuit comes shortly after the McCurtain County Sheriff’s Department found itself at the center of a controversy involving a recording that was taken after a commissioners meeting on March 6. Nearly two weeks ago, theMcCurtain Gazette-Newsreleased the audio recording and a front-page exposé about the racist and threatening remarks county officials allegedly made during it.
“They don’t have a G– d— clue what they’re getting into,” Jennings says. “Not this day and age. I’m gonna tell you something. If it was back in the day, when Alan Marston would take a damn Black guy and whoop their ass and throw him in the cell? I’d run for f—— sheriff.”
“Yeah. Well, It’s not like that nomore,” Clardy responds.
(Marston was the McCurtain County Sheriff in the 1980s, according toTheOklahoman.)
“I know,” Jennings says. “Take them down to Mud Creek and hang them up with a d— rope. But you can’t do that anymore. They got more rights than we got.”
Sheriff Kevin Clardy.McCurtain County Sheriffs Office
According to theMcCurtain Gazette-News, the conversation later turned to Bruce and Chris Willingham, a father-and-son reporter duo from the paper. (Bruce is the reporter who captured the audio on his recorder.) The officials discussed two “big deep holes” and Jennings mentioned hiring hitmen.
Shortly after the paper released the audio,the Oklahoma Sheriffs' Association announcedthat Clardy, Manning and Hendrix were suspended from the association. The next day on April 19, Jennings resigned from his position as commissioner,McCurtain Gazette-Newsreports.
After the recording went viral,protests beganoutside of the Board of County Commissioners office, and the once-print-only paper created awebsiteto share their reporting. They have since publicly released the transcription of therecording in its entirety.
PEOPLE has reviewed the audio and transcription, but is unable to independently verify the speakers.
According toKGOU, Okla. Gov. Kevin Stitt is considering impeachment for Clardy.
source: people.com
