Shiloh County Sheriff's Department: You've Been Warned

[S. Franklin]

Yesterday, members of the International Union Brotherhood staged a peaceful protest outside of their union building. I interviewed several members, who all related that they were protesting a lack of action by union leadership in recent times. Members were lined up outside the building in a picket line when union leadership dialed 911, calling in the Shiloh County Sheriff’s Department to forcibly break the protest.

I was able to confirm that multiple units from the Sheriff’s Department responded to a report of an “angry mob” outside the building, including several supervisors. Union workers told me that Sheriff’s deputies were confrontational from the beginning, bringing attack dogs out to attempt to intimidate the crowd. A video sent to me by one of the union protestors appears to show a Sergeant Patterson threatening a previously peaceful protestor with his dog, telling the protestor that he was going to have his dog bite him.

Rumors are that this is not the first time a Sheriff’s Deputy has threatened a citizen with violence or unnecessarily used force during an arrest. As of the time of publication, I have not been able to locate concrete proof that SCSD has a pattern of violence, and it is rumor. But, rumors exist for a reason. They don’t appear from nowhere.

This incident certainly gave Shiloh County Sheriff’s Department the appearance of being jack-booted corporate thugs, and not serving the citizenry as they so faithfully claim. What other reason would an agency have to break up such a peaceful, nonviolent protest than to obey their corporate masters?

This incident raises the question that many in Fort Shannon have been afraid to ask - is Shiloh County Sheriff’s Department a corrupt, violent, out-of-line police department? Have they strayed from their mission of protecting and serving the citizens of this county and instead become jack-booted corporatist thugs, willy-nilly breaking up peaceful protests and oppressing minorities? This is a question I intend to answer, and to the Sheriff’s Department: you can consider this your notice. I will find out. I will expose any corruption or inherent violence.