UPDATE: Sheriff Lott called me this afternoon, and he has a pretty good explanation for why he went with the feds first. Later tonight, I’ll write a new post about it…
I said this in a comment earlier, but I think it’s worth a separate post…
So Sheriff Lott has fired the deputy involved in the Spring Valley incident.
But here’s something I want to know, and would have asked Leon had I been at the presser: Why go straight to the FBI? Why not invite SLED in? Or, I don’t know, the statewide grand jury.
Yeah, I know, even though he’s my twin and all, Leon may not be as enamored of subsidiarity as I am. But why immediately buy into the cliche that NO ONE in SC can be fair and objective about this; we have to bring in the feds?
As Harry Harris said in a comment yesterday: “SC seems to be the one state that has reacted to most of the police excessive force revelations in a sound manner – prosecuting and disciplining the officers involved.” Leon’s immediate firing of this deputy demonstrates that — unless it just demonstrates a Pilatesque desire to wash his hands, and I don’t think that’s the case.
I would have given the SC system a chance to work. If the feds wanted to do a civil rights investigation on a parallel track, nobody’s stopping them.
But I just don’t get why, in this case and previous ones, Leon doesn’t want to turn to SLED…
Lott made several references over the past few days as this being a national story – or replying to a question about it being national.
I have to believe he received local pressure (Steve Benjamin, County Council) to ignore SLED and bring in the national folks. My hunch is that has a lot to do with it.
Some in the national media’s sole purpose is to get folks fired up into a frenzy- and maybe also thinks that involving the feds right away is the best way to keep things calm.
The mayor was quoted as saying if it were CPD, he’d send it to SLED.
And Leon doesn’t like to do that. I don’t know why. I’m going to ask him next time I see him…
I rarely believe what politicians say in public
But in this case, maybe he just believes the DOJ and FBI is the best place to send it.
No matter how nasty this incident is, it’s still isolated and unusual. It ain’t federal.
It’s not – but it’s national news- and the media frenzy on cable news has a pretty consistent refrain – locals can’t investigate themselves- and if they do – it’s funny business.
UPDATE: Sheriff Lott called me this afternoon, and he has a pretty good explanation for why he went with the feds first. Later tonight, I’ll write a new post about it…
I thought it made perfect sense from the beginning – being a national story and all.