Demonstrators call for Howard County sheriff to resign to restore trust

For John West, who has lived in Columbia since 1972, the thought of racism and discrimination at the head of a law enforcement agency is shocking.&quot;This is not the Howard County I know,&quot; said West, who is black. &quot;I'm looking for the good officers to speak up and break this code blue code of silence.&quot;Standing outside the Howard County courthouse in Ellicott City on a rainy Monday morning, West and a handful of other residents called on Howard County Sheriff James Fitzgerald to resign.Fitzgerald is in the hot seat after a scathing report by the Howard County Office of Human Rights found evidence of years of discrimination and documented a hostile working environment, including demeaning statements against African Americans, women and Jews by the three-term sheriff.Protestors called on the Howard County Sheriff to resign Monday outside the Howard County courthouse, which is one of two buildings that houses the sheriff's staff.The sheriff has not responded to multiple requests for comment since last week. The Howard County Times was denied access to the sheriff's office in Columbia because staff said the sheriff was not there at the time and there was no space to wait for him.An occupied car from the sheriff's office stood atop a hill overlooking the protest.Demonstrators say Fitzgerald's resignation would be the first step in restoring trust in the county's law enforcement.Renee Grant said Fitzgerald's resignation was necessary to address what could be an institutional problem in the sheriff's office that went unchecked for years.&quot;What do we want to do? Wait before he kills somebody or somebody is killed as a result?&quot; said Grant. &quot;I have three black boys. … I'm not waiting until somebody is killed.&quot;No judge or jury has found Fitzgerald guilty of breaking any laws. The report is part of an internal investigation used to set the groundwork for a resolution or a suit in court.Sources close to the sheriff said the findings of the report have been common knowledge for years, revealing the independence of an elected official who sources said has gone unchecked for years.For residents who voted for the sheriff, the findings were especially jarring.Jean Joklik, a Columbia resident since 2007, said she was shocked to hear the allegations existed for years.&quot;I voted for this man because he was a Democrat and I regret it to my very core,&quot; Joklik said. &quot;I cannot imagine how it is possible the Democratic Party allowed this man to go through without thoroughly vetting him.&quot;Eric Byrd, a minister of music at St. John Baptist Church in Columbia, said the findings may warrant a system-wide investigation into the sheriff's office beyond the sheriff.&quot;This is egregious behavior. This is not I drank too much at a party and had an off-handed comment once.&quot; Byrd said. &quot;This is a pattern of behavior over years to be able to display that. You do have to wonder, what is going on? We should continue to put whatever safeguards so that we don't have this again when the next person comes in.&quot;The Rev. Janelle Bruce, the organizer of the protest and a minister at St. John Baptist Church in Columbia, said &quot;the people's voice had been heard.&quot;Earlier, about 25 protesters gathered Friday night to call for Fitzgerald's resignation, joining more than 20 former and current elected officials in the county who have called for his immediate resignation.&quot;Wherever Fitzgerald is hiding, I want him to know this is not acceptable behavior,&quot; Bruce said. &quot;And it will not be tolerated.&quot;

Demonstrators call for Howard County sheriff to resign to restore trust

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