Ohio sheriff lieutenant says sleeping medication made him proclaim that he 'will not' help Democrats

An Ohio sheriff lieutenant on Monday apologized for making multiple statements against Democrats on social media, and told the department he works for that the messages were because of a sleeping medication that can make him "act out of character." 

Clark County Lt. John Rodgers made a series of controversial posts on Facebook last month, where he proclaimed that if someone asks for his help, and "support[s] the Democrat Party, I will not help you." He also said he knew which voters in his area support Democrats and would not "help [them] survive the end of days," according to CBS News.

A third post said voters would need to "provide proof of who you voted for" if they asked him for help. 

Rodgers apologized for the posts in a statement, and promised to do "everything in my power" to mend the trust he lost from the posts. 

"I know I cannot apologize enough, and my apologies may seem empty, but I will continue to apologize as long as necessary," Rodgers said. "I know it will be difficult for the public to trust me, but I will do everything in my power to start mending that trust. I apologize from the bottom of my heart and want to ensure our community I will always serve to the best of my ability and strive to do better. 

"I want to ensure the citizens in our community that I have always treated everyone with dignity and respect no matter our differences and will strive to show them I can do better," he added.

Rodgers was not fired from his post, but was given a reprimand for violating the department's social media policy. The sheriff's office also apologized for Rodgers' posts in a statement, and said they "in no means reflect the Clark County Sheriff's Office delivery of service to ALL our community."

The lieutenant, who has worked for the department for over 20 years, wrote a response to the reprimand, per the Springfield News-Sun, where he maintained that he did not remember writing the posts, and that he could not find them when he searched his social media profile. But he said he was made aware of the posts from a concerned coworker. 

Rodgers said that the prescription sleeping medication he takes can cause him to send "out of character" texts, phone calls or other forms of communication as a side effect. He also said when he was made aware of the posts, he stopped taking the medication and deactivated his Facebook account.

"We protect people's rights and we don't support the conduct to the contrary," Mike Young, the county's chief deputy, said in a statement. "I can't go back in time and take that post away; the lieutenant made the post and he has received consequences for that."

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.