Blackfoot mayor, Police Department call on Bingham County sheriff to resign
Blackfoot Mayor Marc Carroll has become the first city official to call upon Bingham County Sheriff Craig Rowland to resign and publicly apologize.
The Idaho Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday charged Rowland with two felonies and a misdemeanor after he allegedly assaulted youth group members who left a thank-you note at his home, including pulling a gun on them. When speaking with investigators about the incident, Rowland made disparaging remarks about people from the nearby Fort Hall Reservation, according to documents.
Rowland took a two-week leave of absence but returned to his job two weeks ago.
“In order to protect the integrity of our Law Enforcement Agencies, the city of Blackfoot and the Blackfoot Police Department call for the immediate resignation and public apology to the Fort Hall community by Sheriff Craig Rowland,” Carroll said in a statement.
The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes called for Rowland’s resignation and a public apology on Thursday, over comments he allegedly made to investigators, after he said threats had been made against him and his wife in recent months.
“I have been doing this job for 36 years,” Rowland said, according to AG records. “I have had drunk Indians drive down my cul-de-sac. I’ve had drunk Indians come to my door. I live just off the reservation, we have a lot of reservation people around us that are not good people.”
Carroll is now the first city official to also call for a resignation, and is the first to speak out about the allegations of assault upon the youth group.
“A trusted law enforcement officer has admitted to physically assaulting a neighbor and threatening her with his service handgun,” Carroll said. “In a subsequent interview with an officer of the court, Sheriff Rowland provided information that was corroborated through interviews with those passengers in the accosted automobile.”
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The three Bingham County commissioners have individually issued statements, but none of them addressed the fact that their sheriff is charged with felony aggravated assault, felony aggravated battery and misdemeanor exhibition of a gun. They have not said whether Rowland should resign or remain in office.
Rowland’s attorney, Justin Oleson, attacked EastIdahoNews.com for publishing court document statements and called the news organization a tabloid.
“That statement was taken completely out of context by the investigator and East Idaho News,” Oleson said to EastIdahoNews.com “It appears that occurred so that Sherriff (sic) Rowland’s name could be further slandered and his reputation tarnished by the media in an attempt to sway the jury of public opinion. Sherriff (sic) Rowland has had a good working relationship with the Shoshone Bannock Tribes and Tribal Members and has the utmost respect for his law-abiding neighbors on the reservation.”
RELATED | Sheriff under investigation after allegedly threatening church youth group and leader
The Idaho Sheriffs Association issued a statement explaining that Rowland is a past president of the organization and has served on its Board of Directors. Executive Director Jeff Lavey said he asked Rowland to not represent himself as a board member pending the outcome of the criminal charges.
“We recognize that the crimes alleged are alarming, but all citizens are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law,” Lavey wrote in his statement. “Sheriff Rowland is afforded due process under the law just like any other citizen. It is our position as an association that the judicial system needs to be allowed to play its role through the adjudication process.”
Idaho law limits Bingham County’s actions against a sheriff accused of a crime. The law states that the officeholder would be removed only if convicted of a felony or any public offense involving a violation of their oath of office.
Rowland’s first court appearance is scheduled for Wednesday.
This story was originally published December 17, 2021 at 3:07 PM.