Coming to a sheriff's office near you

By Chuck Baldwin

On the front cover of Washington State's August 2015 "Inlander" magazine, Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich is shown hands on hips standing on top of the "Don't Tread On Me" (Gadsden) flag. The title of the article is "Daring To Tread."

The sheriff and at least one of his deputies have verbalized opinions that "constitutionalists" are threats to the sheriff's office, the federal government, and to the country itself. Sheriff Knezovich even went so far as to compare "constitutionalists" with the Sunni Muslim terror group ISIS. The deputy indicated that the presence of armed "constitutionalists" in the county was the principal reason why the sheriff's office was amassing military equipment. When asked to name names as to who he was referring to, Spokane County's highest-ranking law enforcement officer (Sheriff Knezovich) named Washington State Representative Matt Shea and radio talk show host Alex Jones (who resides in Texas, not Spokane County, Washington).

Writing for InfoWars.com, Mikael Thalen reports, "The Inlander piece highlights the sheriff's ongoing campaign against local conservative groups who he feels are pushing dangerous rhetoric. When asked to specifically name those responsible, Knezovich pointed to both Rep. Shea and 'all those folks that created the video about the Deputy.'

"Knezovich's statement refers to exclusive footage released by Infowars last December which highlighted unsettling comments made by a Spokane sheriff's deputy as he stood next to the department's mine-resistant ambush protected military vehicle (MRAP). After a local resident approached and questioned law enforcement's need for military hardware, the deputy immediately used 'constitutionalists' with 'firearms' as justification.

"'I mean, we've got a lot of constitutionalists and a lot of people that stockpile weapons, lots of ammunition,' the deputy said. 'They have weapons here locally.'"

The report continued saying, "'Instead of apologizing for the comments made by his deputy, Sheriff Knezovich essentially blamed Infowars for daring to report on the issue, claiming that the quote was taken out of context while failing to explain how such a brazen statement could be taken for anything other than its face value,' noted Infowars' Paul Joseph Watson at the time.

"Speaking with Infowars, Rep. Shea expressed outrage at Knezovich's latest comments and also the article's analysis on a local pastor.

"'I fought Islamic terrorists on the ground in Iraq face-to-face,' Shea said. 'I lost a man – who was a Christian and who would have fit the Sheriff's definition of a constitutionalist – under my command fighting Islamic terrorists.'

"'It is outrageous to compare constitutionalists and Christians to ISIS! We believe in freedom. We believe in liberty. A value set that is rooted in the Judeo-Christian tradition. ISIS is anathema to those things. I call on every Christian and constitutionalist in this country to demand an apology from this Sheriff for his outrageous comments and demand his immediate resignation.'"

See the written and video reports here:

Sheriff Compares Constitutionalists To ISIS

Readers should know that Representative Shea served in the U.S. Army with two combat tours overseas, including eight months in Bosnia as a platoon leader, and eleven months in Baghdad, Iraq, as a company commander. Matt was awarded a Bronze Star, Meritorious Service Medal, and Combat Infantryman's Badge along with other awards and commendations. Matt was also distinguished as being the top rated Captain in his Battalion. This is the man that Sheriff Knezovich says is as dangerous as ISIS.

Unfortunately, Sheriff Knezovich is illustrative of the propaganda that local and State police agencies and sheriff's offices are receiving from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Working in tandem with the ultra-left wing hate group, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), DHS constantly feeds anti-conservative, anti-constitutionalist, anti-patriot, anti-Christian, anti-veterans propaganda to local police agencies via its numerous "fusion centers" across the country.

See this report:

The Threat To Freedom: The Southern Poverty Law Center And The Department Of Homeland Security

Add a historical and constitutional ignorance with a personal lust for power, and sheriffs and police chiefs across the country readily buy into the DHS propaganda. The result is men like Sheriff Knezovich and his deputy.

I dare say that a good many of the readers of this column reside in counties in which the sheriff feels exactly as does Sheriff Knezovich. Thank God, not all of our sheriffs and city police chiefs fall into this category. Some of them have actually read the Constitution and Bill of Rights and are devoted to protecting the liberties of the citizens in their cities and counties. But far too many of them are of the ilk of Sheriff Knezovich.

But once again, I must ask, where are the pastors? Where are the pastors in Spokane County, Washington?

Spokane County, Washington, is filled with Christians and churches. It is a God-fearing community. Why are the pastors of Spokane County not rallying their churches against the obviously anti-Christian, anti-patriot, anti-constitutionalist bigotry of this sheriff's office? Every pastor in the county and every church congregation in the county should be demanding with protests, phone calls, emails, letters, etc., that this sheriff resign. This should continue every day in perpetuity until he does so.

I'll say it plainly: the only reason we have tyrannically-inclined men like Sheriff Knezovich in public office is because our pastors don't have the man-stuff to stand up against it. We have corrupt, unconstitutional civil magistrates because America's pastors willingly, sheepishly, cowardly go along with it. Behind every Big Government toady like Sheriff Knezovich are scores and hundreds of pastors who are aiding and abetting him.

Think what could happen in Spokane County, Washington – and in counties across America – if our pastors would courageously lead their congregations to stand against this kind of corruption and abuse of power. Just think!

Did our plucky pastors in Colonial America lead the Christian people of America to cast off the tyranny of the British Crown only to have their spiritual descendants in the pulpits willfully sit back as indifferent bystanders and allow the sons of the patriots to be led into servitude like sheep? Jonas Clark, Joab Houghton, John Peter Muhlenberg, James Caldwell, and the rest of the Black Regiment must be turning over in their graves.

In the meantime, Christians, constitutionalists, and gun owners in Spokane County, Washington, have a sheriff's office that considers them to be potential terrorists in the similitude of ISIS.

Once again, we see how DHS training and indoctrination is teaching our local police agencies to regard freedom-loving Americans as the enemy. Now you know: all of those armored vehicles and military hardware owned by your local police department or sheriff's office are purchased for the purpose of being used against us "constitutionalists." Be sure to watch the video report contained in the Infowars.com news story linked earlier in this column. And then please remember what the Spokane County sheriff's deputy said the next time you see one of those big armored vehicles rolling down the streets of your community.

How does it happen that local sheriff's deputies can relate people who support the Constitution of the United States to Islamic terrorists? And tell me again what it was that those deputies and police officers swore an oath to, if it wasn't the Constitution of the United States?

Then again, I remember sitting across the lunch table recently with an elected county official and asking him to tell me what the oath was he took when he was first elected to public office, and he candidly (and sheepishly) told me he couldn't remember. It is obvious that Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich doesn't remember, either.

P.S. In light of the existence of constitutionally-illiterate and tyrannically-predisposed sheriffs like Ozzie Knezovich, let me remind readers that we have just recently produced an hour-long DVD wherein my son, Attorney Tim Baldwin, lectures (complete with instructional slides) on the topic: "Police Contact: How To Respond."

Tim explains your rights and the law regarding police contacts in a variety of circumstances, such as traffic stops, etc. He explains the rights and protections you have under the Constitution. He presents a constitutional, legal analysis of what you should and shouldn't do when brought into contact with a police officer, sheriff's deputy, or highway patrolman.

Tim is a former felony prosecutor and is now a criminal defense attorney. He has seen both sides of the criminal justice system and is imminently qualified to discuss this subject. He knows that for an attorney to best protect his or her clients, they need to know how to protect themselves before and during the investigative and arrest procedures.

As his dad, I can tell you he taught me a lot! Believe me, being informed of your legal rights and responsibilities under the law is very empowering, which is exactly what America's Founding Fathers intended. True power, true authority, rests with the People under God and the Constitution. Police officers are SERVANTS of the People and are as obligated to obey the Constitution as are each of us. Knowing these rights and protections will give you much CONFIDENCE when you are pulled over by a police officer.

Let me hasten to say that I am ALWAYS respectful to a police officer. And so should we always be. We must respect his position. But mostly, we must respect the law that he, the police officer, is sworn to uphold. But how can we respect the law if we don't even know and understand the law? How can officers improve their law-enforcement practice unless citizens know when police are following the law? How is the legal system benefited if police can trample citizens' constitutional rights with the consent of the people? Tim's DVD will help tremendously in this regard.

In light of the climate that we all live in today, I cannot emphasize enough how important it is that we become familiar with our constitutional rights and responsibilities. If enough of the American people would learn these constitutional principles, they could stem the growing tide of unconstitutional conduct by our public servants, including, and especially, by those in law enforcement.

Here is where you can order the DVD, "Police Contact: How To Respond," by Attorney Tim Baldwin.

Police Contact: How To Respond

And, folks, this DVD is a bargain at whatever price. How much value do you place on your liberties?

© Chuck Baldwin