Social media brings chickens home to roost in Pacific Grove.

On Saturday, Nov. 28, Weekly reporter Pam Marino and I received multiple emails and text messages with screenshots. Among those screenshots, taken from an account on the social media platform Parler: A sign reading “Fuck Black Lives Matter;” a post with the words “hate group” superimposed over a Black Lives Matter sign; a message that reads “Free Kyle Rittenhouse,” in reference to the teenager accused of shooting and killing two demonstrators during Black Lives Matter protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin; and a meme that compares President-elect Joe Biden to the intellectually disabled, banjo-playing kid from the film Deliverance. In a second set of screenshots, President Donald Trump is portrayed as a hero, saving white babies from the ravenous teeth of Hillary Clinton in caricature form and riding atop a military tank.

Political beliefs are political beliefs and they’re allowed, no matter how abhorrent. As guaranteed by the Constitution, hating Black Lives Matter and championing Cadet Bone Spurs is allowed, if distasteful to many. And hating on Joe Biden and Hilary Clinton is allowed too, if distasteful to others.

What if, though, the memes and posts came from a social media account of a law enforcement officer? And what if that law enforcement officer has danced this particular dance before and was investigated – and cleared, with apologies issued – for having bumper stickers representing anti-government sentiment and anti-government groups on his personal vehicle that he parked outside the police station?

This is the situation that led a clearly exasperated Pacific Grove Police Chief Cathy Madalone to call a Sunday afternoon press conference to say that, once again, that officer is being placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation to determine if the Parler account is indeed his.

“Our public deserves transparency and as your chief, I have a responsibility to inform our community members when something deeply troubling is brought to my attention,” Madalone told reporters. And if the account is his, she adds, “I want to make it clear that this conduct is contrary to our department mission, and unbecoming of any police officer and that is not the type of behavior expected of our employees.”

As of Nov. 9, Parler, the platform where the posts were made, was listed as the top free app on Google Play and Apple’s app stores. It’s considered the alternative Twitter – a place where anyone can say anything – and has drawn legions of Trump supporters.

The posts that led to the officer’s suspension came from an account bearing his picture, with the username “MAGS3PER.” My initial thought upon seeing them: “Can this guy really be this dumb?” My second thought was, “How can we be sure it’s him, and not someone trying to get him into trouble?” That thought arose because the posts were sent just days after Marino wrote a story about a citizens’ petition circulating to have him removed from the department.

About an hour after the paper contacted Madalone to ask her about the posts, the Parler account was taken down.

The PGPD has policies regarding “prohibited speech, expression and conduct.” In general, it states that prohibited expression includes, “Speech or expression that, while not made pursuant to an official duty, is significantly linked to, or related to, the Pacific Grove Police Department and tends to compromise or damage the mission, function, reputation or professionalism” of the department.

I reached out to a few police managers around the county to ask their opinions. One said if they had to send the guy out on a call for service from a Black citizen, it would always be in the back of their mind how the officer would respond.

A second said while they don’t know the officer, they know the type: “He was told he didn’t do anything wrong the first time, and guys like this aren’t above poking the bear with a sharp stick,” they said.

With the officer now on leave and an investigation in process, consider the bear poked. So poked, in fact, that a large group of the officer’s detractors planned on showing up at the Dec. 2 Pacific Grove City Council meeting, after the Weekly’s deadline.

Mary Duan writes Local Spin for the Weekly. Reach her at mary@mcweekly.com