North Iowa Deputy Resigns Amid Social Media Controversy
Two days after a petition was launched to have him fired over a social media post involving a fatal motorcycle crash, the north Iowa sheriff’s deputy at the center of the controversy has resigned.
22-year-old Allan Shafer of Mason City was killed early Sunday (03.31) morning when his motorcycle collided with a deer northeast of Mason City.
Friends of Shafer and community members accused Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Deputy Randall Jensen of posting an insensitive photo of the fatality with an unprofessional caption on his personal Snapchat. A photo, censored with red scribbles, was posted to the SnapChat story account of “Russ Jensen.”
An online petition asking the County to fire Jensen was then started.Â
Late Friday (04.05) morning, Sheriff Kevin Pals issued the following statement:
“The Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office initiated an investigation on April 4, 2024, into an alleged posting of an accident scene photo that was sent out to members of the public by a Deputy Sheriff. The Deputy Sheriff has resigned his position with the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office effective today.
As of 3 pm Friday afternoon, over 3,700 people had signed the petition to fire Jensen.
