Ohio Deputies Traded Racial Slurs Online!

High ranking Montgomery County deputy was placed on leave after he traded racial emails to his fellow officers. 

In Dayton, Ohio, the Montgomery County sheriff's office has placed two officers on administrative leave after it was discovered a few deputies were trading racial comments about the Black community through their police-issued devices. This is comes right after the grand jury found no probable cause for the NYPD officer who placed Eric Garner in a chokehold.

This comes a few weeks after the no probable cause verdict for the Ferguson officer who killed unarmed Michael Brown.

This happened a month after the no probable cause verdicts for Beavercreek and Provo officers who killed Jonathan Crawford and Darrien Hunt.

These deputies were pretty much having a field day online about the residents of color.

The Dayton chapter of the NAACP is calling for the removal of these officers. The Montgomery County sheriff Phil Plummer is hoping that the issue doesn't go to the U.S. Justice Department.

WDTN reporsts that Plummer has ordered an investigation into the officer's conduct through internal affairs.

According to the report five members of the force are under investigation but so far two high ranks are pulled.

“These text messages, while some of them may be some joking going on back and forth, some of them are flat out rude and racist,” said NAACP Dayton chapter president Derrick Foward.

The messages were exchanged between November 2011 and January 2013.

Sheriff Phil Plummer says the messages had racial overtones and were considered inappropriate.

“These five individuals have taken this organization three steps backward and will be held accountable,” said Sheriff Plummer. “I will not tolerate racism in this department.”

The sheriff described the texts as “very disturbing racial text messages”. He says one of the five deputies made the racially charged comment.

Foward turned over documentation of the complaint to the sheriff’s office Tuesday. Sheriff Plummer says the investigation is in its early stages, but it is important to public safety that both Flanders and Sollenberger be put on leave.

Plummer says the text messages were exchanged during both on and off the clock hours, but he says that deputies are always considered on the clock representing the community.

The messages were sent from personal cell phones.

Phil Plummer, sheriff for the county may have to fire the cannon a couple of times.

Flanders was a sergeant at the time of the text messages and Sollenberger was a detective under Flanders’ supervision. Both have since been promoted to their current positions.

Flanders is currently working as a jail administrator. Sollenberger is in Internal Affairs.

2 NEWS Investigates spoke with Captain Tom Flanders and his wife on the phone. He said the allegations are completely false and he has not been shown the text message transcript the sheriff is referring to. He and his wife said they are not racist and look forward to clearing his name. He has been with the sheriff’s office for 19 years.

Foward said the Dayton Unit NAACP will request an outside agency to perform an investigation. He said the complainant, who he would not identify, has made made that request.

Some of the emails and text messages included: I HATE NIGGERS! That is all.