John Andrew Stitt, the son of Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, was captured on body cam video speaking to deputies after they found a case containing guns belonging to his father that were in the back of an unlocked vehicle. In the footage, Stitt, 20, admitted to having had alcohol in addition to being in possession of the gun case.
Stitt was captured on video being questioned by police officers while in the parking lot of a local haunted house that he was visiting with friends on the night of Halloween. Police said the gun case had been dragged from the vehicle.
“To be honest, my dad’s the governor,” Stitt said, to which a responding officer replied, “I don’t care.”
“No, I know,” Stitt said. “I just like to clarify.” Gov. Stitt was reelected earlier this month.
Stitt admitted to having drunk alcohol and told officers the truck and gun case both belonged to him. However, he then stated that he had a designated driver and was not operating the vehicle. Police asked Stitt if he had been smoking marijuana, which he denied.
Body cam footage shows the police requesting Stitt to call his parents. He was escorted home by an Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper, who also picked up the guns.
One of the deputies who responded recommended a charge of minor in possession of alcohol for Stitt to the Logan County District Attorney’s Office.
Now, nearly a month after the incident, the sheriff in Logan County, Oklahoma, is claiming that Stitt may have been treated more harshly than many as a result of his father’s status.
When asked about the incident, Logan County Sheriff Damon Devereaux told Local outlet KOCO 5 that it wouldn’t be inaccurate to say Stitt was treated “worse” because of his relation to the governor.
“Sheriff. Really quick. It almost seems then that this young man, the governor’s son, was definitely treated differently in some ways, but not in a positive way because of who he was. Is that fair to say?” KOCO 5’s Evan Onstot asked in an interview with Devereaux.
“That is fair to say,” Devereaux replied.
“Is that OK on the other end? Because I know you’re being accused of treating him better because he’s the governor’s son. But, did you treat him worse?” Onstot followed up.
“Well, in some factors, you could look at it that way,” Devereaux said.
Devereaux defended his officers’ handling of the situation; however, he rebuffed public criticism that the younger Stitt got off easy.
“Minor in possession was the only charge we had on this deal because he wasn’t carrying the weapons. He wasn’t using the weapons. He wasn’t driving. He wasn’t causing a disturbance. So, he couldn’t have been arrested for public intoxication,” Devereaux said in a statement to KOCO 5. “And when you watch the bodycam footage, when I watched it, he’s not drunk, you know, like we think of a drunk stumbling, can’t walk, has to hang on to stuff. It appears he may be under the influence, but I don’t think he’s drunk.”
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