In March, an Albemarle County sheriff’s deputy claimed that he was shot by a “suspicious” black loiterer on Berkmar Drive; now he’s being investigated by the county police, and has been accused of lying about what happened. Deputy Stephen Shiflett claimed that he saw a suspicious-looking black man standing out front of Pet Food Discounters that, when the deputy approached him, show at him, hitting his bulletproof vest and his patrol car. The man was later found, but not arrested. Turns out Deputy Shiflett had attacked and arrested a couple who had reported an unlocked convenience store when Shiflett was a Louisa deputy in 2000, with a federal judge consequently awarding half a million dollars to the couple for having their constitutional rights violated. Sheriff Ed Robb, who declared the March attack to be a “hate crime” at the time, says that he’s “established very high standards for Albemarle County’s sheriff’s deputies,” citing Deputy Shiflett’s lack of a criminal record and punctuality. Reed Williams has the story.
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