By Paul Brooks
The Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y.
KINGSTON, N.Y. – The Ulster County Sheriff’s Office is investigating an “offensive” post on the personal Facebook page of a corrections officer.
“We’re looking into it,” Sheriff Paul Van Blarcum said Thursday when asked about the Nov. 20 post by Corrections Officer CJ Polacco, a veteran with at least 30 years in the department.
The post was no longer on Polacco’s Facebook page Thursday, but with minor variations, it has been around on the Internet since at least 2010. One site lists it as reading:
“This morning I went to sign my dog up for welfare. At first the lady said, ‘Dogs are not eligible to draw welfare.’
“So I explained to her that my dog is a mix in color, unemployed, lazy, can’t speak English and has no frigging clue who his daddy is. He expects me to feed him, provide him with housing and medical care, and feel guilty because he is a dog.
“So she looked in her policy book to see what it takes to qualify. My dog gets his first check Friday.
“Damn, this is a great country.”
Van Blarcum said he could not estimate how long the investigation will take to complete since it will involve numerous interviews. It could not be determined whether Polacco is on active duty. Polacco could not be reached for comment.
Disciplinary action, if any, would be up to the sheriff, Ulster County Executive Mike Hein said Thursday.
“Just like so many other residents of Ulster County, I was utterly repulsed and infuriated when I read the racist, sexist and xenophobic Facebook post allegedly made by a corrections officer. While we live in a country that values individual freedoms, this particular post was so offensive and repugnant to a civilized society that I trust the sheriff’s internal investigation concludes with the most severe disciplinary actions possible,” he said.
In October, City of Newburgh officials revealed that a city police officer had “separated” from the department in September after he was connected to an Instagram post containing the Confederate flag. Some city officials called the post disturbing.
©2017 The Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y.