Sheriff Mike Chitwood called the off-duty officer ‘stumbling drunk’ and vowed termination after surveillance footage emerged
An off-duty sergeant with a sheriff’s office in central Florida was arrested after police say surveillance video showed him assaulting an older couple in a bar.
Jason Stickels, 44, was at Merk’s Bar & Grill on Monday afternoon when he “created unwanted contact with a couple seated near the bar,” according to a statement from the Volusia Sheriff’s Office, where Stickels has been employed since 2004.
Mike Chitwood, the Volusia sheriff since 2016, put out a statement criticizing Stickels and apologizing to the couple in the bar.
“How to throw away your law enforcement career in 2 minutes. Off duty, stumbling drunk, harassing people who are just trying to enjoy their afternoon,” Chitwood said in a social media post. “I apologize for this soon-to-be former Volusia Sheriff’s Office sergeant’s idiotic behavior today.”