Two deputies fired over video fracas
May 15, 2017
NAACP president weighs in on firing of deputies, supports Sheriff’s decision
May 16, 2017
The father of a Dulac teen whose mistreatment during an arrest led to the firing of two Terrebonne Parish deputies was arrested Monday night in connection with Facebook threats made against police officers.
Terrebonne Sheriff Jerry Larpenter said Christopher Verdin Sr., 39, 308 Rhonda St. in Chauvin was picked up by detectives for one count of cyberstalking and also four counts of failure to appear in court for traffic and trawling violations.
The suspect is the father of Christopher Verdin Jr., 18, who was arrested for illegal use of a weapon and other charges near the home of his mother in Dulac Saturday. After that arrest a deputy drove Verdin Jr. to his mother’s house on Grand Caillou Road, where he had allegedly fired a .45 caliber pistol and harmed the family’s dog. The deputy, Joey Cehan III, removed the handcuffed teen from the back of his patrol car, where the suspect had been securely kept, then removed the handcuffs while challenging Verdin Jr. to strike him and using offensive language.
(See video of that incident here)
Another deputy, Charles Cook Jr., stood by and took no action to stop Cehan. The incident was videoed and broadcast virally, drawing 178,000 views since Saturday. Cook is also seen on the video, ordering Frankie Duplantis, who was shooting the video, away from the area while abuse of the suspect continued.
Both Cehan and Cook were fired Monday by Larpenter Monday after the incident was investigated. Cehan’s body camera, which is supposed to be on at all times when dealing with the public, was off. The body cams of Cook and another deputy videoed the incident, along with other footage relevant to it.
After the video appeared on Facebook Verdin Sr. made multiple threats against the deputies, including infliction of bodily harm and stating at one point “there will be blood.”
Verdin Jr. had been arrested lawfully. The action taken by Cehan was subsequent to that lawful arrest.
Since the incident exploded on social media there has been a tidal wave of support for Cehan. When the firings were announced an internet petition was begun for the reinstating of Cehan and Cook. Larpenter said he stands by his final decision. Senior officers have maintained that Cehan’s actions were troubling, although he had never been brought up on charge before. Cook had been counseled in the past for minor infractions of department policies.
Verdin Jr. remains locked up at the Terrebonne Parish jail in lieu of a $75,000 bond.
