In a shocking turn of events, a group of officials in McCurtain County, Oklahoma, were caught on tape making insensitive comments about a woman who tragically died in a house fire, comparing her to a piece of barbecue. They even joked about assassinating a journalist who dared to report on their shady behavior. The recording was published by Gazette-News, and needless to say, it did not go down well with anyone who heard it!

According to the Gazette-News, Bruce Willingham, a reporter for the paper, left his recorder on, hoping to capture evidence of the officials holding secret meetings. But what he got instead was a shocking and utterly appalling conversation that made him feel both frightened and disgusted. We can’t say we blame him!

Things got even worse for the officials when Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt demanded their immediate resignation. In a statement to The Washington Post, he said that there was no place for such hateful rhetoric in Oklahoma, especially from people who are supposed to represent the community. We couldn’t agree more, Gov. Stitt!

Of course, the officials in question have denied any wrongdoing, saying that the recordings were “illegally obtained” and “altered.” They even claim that recording them was a criminal act! But we’re pretty sure that making jokes about a woman who died in a house fire is far more criminal than recording a conversation without permission.

It all started at a public meeting of the McCurtain Board of Commissioners, where Sheriff Clardy gave an update on a deadly fire that had happened just a few days earlier. Instead of showing empathy and compassion for the victim, the officials made crude jokes about barbecue and even suggested that they might have someone assassinated. It’s like we’re watching a cheap mob movie!

All of this happened because the Gazette-News has been reporting on the corrupt practices of the sheriff’s department for years. In fact, they ran an eight-part series on misconduct in the office, exposing tainted homicide evidence, questionable hirings, and leaks from inside the department. But instead of listening and addressing the issues, the officials decided to double down and make crude jokes about people who died in fires. Nice work, guys!

We commend the Gazette-News for its brave reporting and its commitment to uncovering the truth. We’re sure that the Willingham family has been through hell over the past year, suffering intimidation and harassment for trying to do their jobs. But they have our support, and we hope that they can move beyond this and continue to report the news without being the news themselves. Meanwhile, we can’t wait for the next installment in this sordid saga!

Serious News: washingtonpost