Grant County sheriff, under scrutiny, speaks out

It’s been almost a month since a group of armed occupiers, including Ammon Bundy, traveled to John Day from Burns to get to a community meeting where they were scheduled to speak.

On their way, the group was arrested and LaVoy Finicum fatally shot. It was the beginning of the end of the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, which lasted 41 days.

Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer has been said to be sympathetic to the cause of the occupiers and had previously met with some of them in John Day.

Rumors were flying about how much Palmer was involved with the group.

Palmer told NewsChannel 21 on Wednesday he was not responsible for the community meeting.

“I never invited them, and it is a rumor,” Palmer said.

Palmer had met with some of the occupiers, and witnesses of the meeting said he had the occupiers sign his pocket Constitution.

“Some people were proud of him for that and some were appalled,” said Grant County Judge Scott Myers.

Now, several in the community, including John Day Police Chief Richard Gray and John Day 911 Dispatch Director Valerie Luttrell, have asked the Oregon Department of Justice to investigate Palmer.

“(For) the position that he put us in, aligning himself with people that have been committing known crimes,” Luttrell said.

Not everyone agrees.

“I trust Sheriff Palmer in my dealings with him,” Myers said.

Palmer was brief in his answers and said he did not want to comment on the investigation.

“I made a stance to stay out of what happened down in Burns,” he said. “I was not invited by the sheriff (of Harney County), he asked me to stay away from it and I’ve respected that, and I’ve tried to live up to it.”

Palmer has stayed away from the media since the controversy around him and the occupiers grew.

“I’m exhausted from it,” Palmer said.

Although the occupation happened in Harney County, the issue is still hitting close to home here in Grant County, dividing a community.

“It divides families, it divides co-workers,” Myers said.

The division was apparent during Wednesday’s community meeting.

“I want to live a safe community without fear and intimidation,” a Grant County resident said.

Residents on both sides of the issue said they feel threatened and harassed.

“The division within our county was instigated by the Association of Oregon Counties,” said another resident.

But another resident felt the exact opposite and said: “It was put out by people who are promoting these anti-government sentiments.”

The meeting was about a resolution adopted by the county court condemning the occupation of the Malheur refuge and supporting state and federal laws. It also asks any remaining militants to go home and let local citizens speak for themselves.

It’s a message supported by a Harney County resident at the meeting.

“The militia came down to us to force us to change our elected officials,” the resident said.

It was a short, one-page resolution that took weeks of debate to pass, evidence that the occupation opened wounds that won’t heal overnight.

“It isn’t a good thing to happen — it divides,” Luttrell said. “It’s sad.”