Columbus Officials Have Double Standards When Handling Protesters
A peaceful protest Sunday night at the homes of Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein, City Council President Shannon Hardin, and Councilwoman Shayla Favor is another glaring example of why citizens in this town need to wise up and vote these two-faced career politicians out of office.
Many of you know what went down Sunday, so I will not bog you down with all the details. In short, four people were arrested on misdemeanor trespassing charges, tossed into a paddy wagon, and hauled off to Jackson Pike Jail.
They’re all homeless activists who represent a non-profit organization called First Collective. They showed up on the front lawns of Klein, Hardin, and Favor Sunday evening with tents and sleeping bags, to protest the city’s decision to raze a homeless camp on Mound Street. The plan, I suppose, was to camp out on the public officials’ property until they got their attention and changed their minds to run off the homeless people from that camp on the city’s Near East Side.
Their plan backfired.
Columbus Division of Police officers immediately showed up and explained to the protesters that they were on private property and had to leave at once. Well, the homeless activists refused to go, so officers arrested them.
Ah, the hypocrisy.
Remember the George Floyd riots during the summer of 2020? I live in Italian Village and had a front-row seat to the carnage.
Small businesses were vandalized, costing many owners tens of thousands of dollars out of their pockets to pay for the repairs.
Government buildings and Columbus Division of Police vehicles were ravaged.
Innocent bystanders were assaulted. Some pulled out of their vehicles and beaten in broad daylight.
And what did Mayor Andy Ginther, City Attorney Zach Klein, and the shameless puppets on City Council do? They buckled like a pup tent during a storm and practically gave the rioters a key to the city.
They told their police department to stand down and play nice.
Few rioters were arrested, and those who were, did little, if any, jail time.
They settled a federal lawsuit and forked over $5.75 million to 32 protesters who claimed police brutalized them.
And they hired a Special Prosecutor and retired FBI agent to conduct a witch hunt and prosecute Division personnel. In the end, two officers and one sergeant were charged with frivolous misdemeanors. A Franklin County Municipal judge found the sergeant not guilty, and charges were dropped against the two officers at trial. The cost to taxpayers? $324,346.67.
Klein, Hardin, and Favor failed to protect our businesses, government buildings, and citizens. But the moment a handful of harmless protestors show up on their property, they get tough, call the cops, and demand that the protestors are removed.
Remember these three hypocrites and cowards when they come up for re-election.
Note: Columbus Division of Police records show that City Council President Shannon Hardin called police dispatch Sunday evening when protesters showed up on his front lawn. Martin Zachrich, Hardin's hubby, is listed on the police complaint.
Why?
Because Hardin is a smarmy, savvy career political who didn't want to be on record for calling the cops on the protestors.
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