Moniteau County Deputy Placed on Probation

Moniteau County Sheriff Tony Wheatley has announced that a deputy with his department has been placed on probation and disciplined for an incident that occurred last week.

Wheatley said the deputy was finishing a report in a sheriff’s office parking lot when a man pulled up and started asking the deputy about the speed limit in California, Mo, around 1:30 a.m.

Wheatley said the deputy knew the resident from prior interactions with other deputies, responded to the man in an “unprofessional manner,” and used profanity.

The sheriff’s office said the deputy reported the incident to his supervisor, stated it was recorded on his body camera, and acknowledged he shouldn’t have reacted in that manner.

Sheriff Wheatley reviewed the body camera footage and started an internal investigation.

The sheriff’s office said several deputies reported the man has shown up during traffic stops and recorded them. The sheriff’s office says the man has also followed and berated deputies during their shifts at local businesses.

The following day, the man submitted a sunshine request of the body camera footage and requested a copy of the sheriff’s office policy manual without mentioning the incident or filing a complaint against the deputy, according to the release from the department.

Wheatley said the incident should not have occurred. The deputy was placed on probation and disciplined on June 1, when the sheriff finished the investigation.

It is unclear what occurred during the May 27 incident between the deputy and the man, and the name of the deputy has not been released.