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Policeman volunteers to assassinate Obama

23 November 2012 09:03 AM
The Florida-Times Union

Sam Koivisto, a 26-year officer of the Jacksonville, Florida police force resigined last week after commenting to coworkers: "If an order was given to kill Obama or something, then I wouldn't mind being the guy."

Kovisto told the Florida Times-Union [ http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2012-11-21/story/jacksonville-cop-making-threatening-comments-after-election-not-only-bad ] that his throwaway comment had been taken out of context, but according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, the President is not the only victim of Koivisto's ire: referring to the victims of Hurricane Sandy who supported Obama, he reportedly said he didn't care if a nuclear explosion "killed them all".

© independent.co.uk

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/iv-drip/policeman-volunteers-to-assassinate-obama-8346367.html [no commens yet]


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Veteran police officer resigns after telling co-workers he 'wouldn't mind being the guy who assassinates Obama'


Incendiary: Jacksonville detective Sam Koivista chose to retire five months early rather than face an internal investigation over comments he made indicating that he would volunteer to kill the president

By Snejana Farberov
PUBLISHED:18:55 EST, 22 November 2012| UPDATED: 19:01 EST, 22 November 2012

A Florida police officer went into early retirement after admitting that he told colleagues he would volunteer to assassinate President Barack Obama.

Jacksonville detective Sam Koivisto said on Wednesday that his remarks - borne out of frustration with Obama’s victory in the election - have been blown out of proportion, and that he had planned to retire in five months anyway.

The 57-year-old veteran cop retired ahead of schedule earlier this month amid an internal investigation that was sparked by a number of controversial comments he had made to his colleagues on the Friday following the November 6 vote.

Koivisto told co-workers in the auto theft unit that if an order came down to kill the president, he 'wouldn’t mind being the guy,' The Florida Times-Union [ http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2012-11-21/story/jacksonville-cop-making-threatening-comments-after-election-not-only-bad ] reported.

When questioned by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Officer Integrity unit, the 57-year-old admitted that he also didn't care if a nuclear explosion killed everyone in the Northeastern U.S. because they supported Obama in his re-election bid.

Koivisto told the investigators that his comments were 'political hyperbole' and did not constitute actual threats on the president's life.

Drawing a comparison to the killing of Osama bin Laden, the officer went on to say that he told his colleagues: 'If someone says, "Hey, he is the enemy of the State" or whatever and they had to take them out, then I could be the guy to do it."'

'That's not me saying I would kill the guy or anything of that nature. That's just to say if the guy went away, it wouldn't hurt my feelings.'

Sheriff John Rutherford believed Koivisto's remarks were unacceptable workplace conduct, but did not rise to the level of legitimate threats.


Excuse: Koivisto, left, claimed that his remarks were nothing more than 'political hyperbole' and did not constitute actual threats to the life of the president, right

The U.S. Secret Service has been notified about Koivisto’s statements and conducted an investigation into the matter, but has declined to release its findings. The agency said a decision on any possible charges would be up to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

In Koivisto's retirement letter, the 26-year veteran made a request to keep his badge and Glock 27, which was approved by his superiors, according toNews4Jax [ http://www.news4jax.com/news/Audio-Detective-calls-comments-about-Obama-s-death-political-hyperbole/-/475880/17499734/-/format/rsss_2.0/-/qfs62i/-/index.html (with embedded video report)].

Since joining the force in 1986, Koivisto’s track record in the department has been far from perfect. In 2000, he was issued a written reprimand for improper action, the Times-Union [ http://m.jacksonville.com/news/crime/2012-11-16/story/jacksonville-detective-resigns-after-threats-directed-president ] reported.

He also received formal counseling in 1997 and a performance referral in 2004. Information letters were placed in his file in two citizen complaint cases.

Earlier in Koivisto’s career, sloppy police involving allegations of entrapment and denial of due process led to charges being dropped in several drug cases that he and another officer were leading.

© Associated Newspapers Ltd

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2237123/Veteran-police-officer-resigns-telling-workers-wouldnt-mind-guy-assassinates-Obama.html [with comments]