Sheriff's Deputy Accused of Stealing Guns While on the Job

Louisburg, N.C. — A Franklin County sheriff's deputy is out of a job after being charged with larceny.

Richard (Ricky) Bryan Shearin was accused of stealing guns from a Louisburg home on Aug. 18. He and other emergency workers were at the home of David Gillespie Sr. responding to a 911 call.

When they arrived, Gillespie's body was found inside. He had died of natural causes.

Investigators said Shearin then stole two valuable pistols and an UZI 9mm submachine gun from the home. He returned the guns after a family member reported them missing.

Shearin was placed on administrative leave on Nov. 21 in response to the incident. He was fired Tuesday after being indicted on three counts of larceny of a firearm.

“It's my job to run this place fairly, in an honest, upfront manner to the public and I'm not going to tolerate these kind of actions with my employees,” Franklin County Sheriff Pat Green said.

Green said he will call a meeting Wednesday to address his staff about Shearin's actions.

This is the second incident involving a Franklin County sheriff's deputy in less than a month. Deputy Crystal Mitchell struck and killed a pedestrian on New Year's Eve when responding to a non-emergency call.

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[quote]Mr. Minecrime (sic), if not for LEO's, big boys like you would be eaten for breakfast by criminals.[/quote]

@Neutral Observer: maybe, maybe not. What does that have to do with anything? The point still remains that cops do not have any special authority that allows them to violate the inalienable rights of sovereign individuals. And we all have an innate right to self-defense, that certainly extends to defending ourselves against police. A tin badge and a gun do not make one man superior to another.

Sure cooperate with the cops as long as you feel that it's justified. 998 times out of 1000 that works out fine. But if a cop is threatening your health, safety, and welfare, your are certainly justified in defending yourself.

As this story illustrates, cops are fundamentally just normal people: some good, some bad. In either case, there's no reason to let them trample on your rights.

mindcrime
January 24, 2008 5:01 p.m.

Would it be Law Enforcement Officer?

WhenWillitStop
January 23, 2008 6:23 p.m.

In the context of this story; can someone explain to me what LEO means? I'm not up on the law enforecment acronyms.

WhenWillitStop
January 23, 2008 6:22 p.m.

@Godshelper: What you think you have the authority to do is irrelevant. My right to self defense is absolute, and it is absolute since I, as a sovereign individual, decree it so. Would I resist a cop with force? Under most circumstances no, because I (generally) trust the criminal justice system to function as designed and would expect to be freed if I'd done nothing wrong. But would I resist a cop with everything up to, and including, lethal force under certain circumstances? Absolutely. And in that case, yes, somebody might lose their life. All I can say is that if it comes to that, I'll do everything in my power to make sure it's the other guy. And I expect him to do the same. BTW, the courts have ruled on numerous occasions that individuals can resist a false arrest forcefully, FWIW. But what I'm talking about transcends the opinion of "the courts" anyway.

mindcrime
January 23, 2008 4:50 p.m.

Mr. Minecrime, if not for LEO's, big boys like you would be eaten for breakfast by criminals.

neutral observer
January 23, 2008 4:50 p.m.