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Polk County official
denies calling for termination of deputy
Courtesy of BlueRidgeNow.com
By John Harbin
Times-News Staff Writer
COLUMBUS — The Polk County manager denied claims Monday
that he called for the firing of a deputy who questioned
the safety of the county's aging law enforcement
vehicles on TV.
Lt. Brent Jackson appeared on the TV news after another
deputy suffered injuries when he wrecked on the way to
an emergency call.
Jackson, Sheriff Chris Abril and a law enforcement
association claim County Manager Ryan Whitson called for
the lieutenant to be fired after the news report.
In a letter to county commissioners, Abril said he
received a phone call from Whitson on Monday morning
asking that he terminate Jackson's employment.
Whitson denied the accusation before the Polk County
Board of Commissioners meeting Monday night.
"That is a lie," Whitson said.
Last week, Deputy Gary Cox was pinned in his vehicle and
airlifted to a South Carolina hospital after his car ran
off the road on the way to an emergency call. Cox is
resting at home after being released from the hospital,
Abril said.
"First of all, Brent spoke directly on my behalf and I
want to explain to each of you the concerns we have
about our vehicles," Abril wrote commissioners.
"It is no secret that we do have many cars here at the
Polk County Sheriff's Office with over 100,000 miles on
them, and some do even have over 150,000 miles," Abril
said. "This was a problem that didn't occur with this
administration. Sheriff David Satterfield had the same
issues during his term of office. Our deputies patrol a
large area, and this may put between 150 to 200 miles on
a vehicle per shift. Our county averages three to five
new vehicles each budget year."
Abril said he and Whitson worked closely on deals to
move vehicles from the sheriff's office to other county
departments.
"We have requested in our budget for the upcoming year
five new patrol cars to help replace some older
vehicles," Abril said. "We were told during budget
workshops that we would instead be able to purchase
three vehicles. Though the number of cars we are being
allowed to purchase has dropped, the need hasn't."
John Midgette, executive director of North Carolina
Police Benevolent Association Inc., was notified about
Jackson's situation and said he hopes it can be worked
out.
The PBA is a non-profit association of law enforcement
professionals. "It has been brought to our attention
that certain county officials are objecting to Lt.
Jackson's protected speech to the media concerning the
physical condition of the department's motor vehicles
and, more specifically, the deputy's cruiser involved in
the May 16 accident," Midgette said.
He added, "Lt. Jackson is a member of the PBA. Numerous
controlling legal cases strictly prohibit the unlawful
punishment of public employees who speak on matters of
public safety."
Abril said he hoped the matter could be resolved
amicably. "Let us not look at this situation as a
dividing point between our relationship, but rather a
rallying point where we can all agree to work as hard
has possible to ensure that we aggressively continue to
address the issue of the rapidly rising mileage of the
fleet of vehicles," Abril said. |