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Seventy Maine lawmakers have called for Capitol Police Chief Russell Gauvin to be placed on administrative leave immediately. The dozens of lawmakers are making this request due to social media posts that Gauvin has made. According to WMTW — a local news center — this request was made on Jan. 18, 2021.
Gauvin apologized last week for his controversial posts that supported far-right conspiracy theories. These posts have since been deleted. The Capitol Police Chief shared these posts over a period of a few months on his own personal account.
The controversial posts included promulgating conspiracies about wearing face masks and the presidential election. He also included his reaction to the Black Lives Matter protests which happened over the summer.
In his public apology, Gauvin stated, “I take seriously my duty to uphold our laws, to do so in a fair and impartial way, and to protect the Capitol and our people.”
Maine’s Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety Mike Sauschuck and Governor Janet Mills stated that Gauvin’s actions are being reviewed. They made this statement on Friday, January 15.
The Maine lawmakers sent a letter to Sauschuck on Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. In the letter, they called for the Capitol Police Chief’s immediate leave as the investigation proceeds. They want him on leave until further steps are determined.
At this historic juncture in which there are viable, coordinated threats against lawmakers, we find Chief Gauvin’s comments reprehensible, and his apology utterly insufficient
The Maine lawmakers further stated that Gauvin’s words had diminished their trust in his ability to serve in his current role. In addition, they feel they “may never feel safe at the Maine State House facility again so long as Chief Gauvin is in charge of security or a member of the Capitol Police.”
People in Maine are now curious as to what the future may hold for Gauvin.
Written by Sheena Robertson
Source:
WMTW-ABC: Maine lawmakers want Capitol Police chief placed on leave immediately over social media posts
Featured Image by MonsieurNapoléon Courtesy of Wikimedia – GNU Free Documentation License
Inline Image by Jim Roberts Courtesy of Wikimedia – Creative Commons License
