Sheriff Tyrone Clark, an Alabama official, has been removed from his office after the state Supreme Court announced impeachment proceedings. Mr. Clark, who was Sumter County’s Sheriff, has been accused of a long list of illegal operations in the jail he was supposed to guard.
The Alabama Supreme Court has removed Sheriff Tyrone Clark from his office just hours after hearing several testimonies during his impeachment trial.
Attorney General Luther Strange made the announcement on Wednesday.
It has been proven that Sumter County Sheriff Tyrone Clark Sr. ran an array of illegal activities inside the jail he was supposed to oversee.
According to other law enforcers, Clark Sr. made it possible for prisoners to leave the establishment, sell watermelons so they could split the profits.
Clark Sr. also operated what was described as illegal operations where the inmates at the jail were allowed to have female companions visit for sex. Additionally, some of the prisoners were forced to work at Clark’s home for free. They also had access guns and brought back contraband to the jail. Another unusual activity included:
Allowing a prisoner to use an office for sex trafficking and for attempting to use his position to get sex from an employee.
Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange told reporters after the decision:
“Justice has been served. A violation of the public trust by a law enforcement official is about the highest level of corruption that I can imagine.”
Clark, who does not face criminal charges, testified saying that he is innocent. Moreover, according to Robert Tuten, Clark’s lawyer, it is a political witch hunt launched by opponents. Tuten stated:
“They couldn’t beat him in an election and attempted to knock him out of office so they could take his place.”
Court documents showed:
Prisoner Rodney Coats, 39, was supposed to remain behind bars on $675,000 bond on charges including assault, methamphetamine and cocaine trafficking, and receiving stolen property. Instead, Clark ordered staff not to shake him down, gave him access to firearms, enabled him to engage in human trafficking from inside the jail, and arranged an unsecured room where Coats had sex with visiting women who had not been searched or monitored.
It is not over for Sheriff Clark, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) have opened a new investigation into his activities, and have raided the Sumter County Sheriff’s offices on March 15th.
