Lawsuit: Sheriff couldn’t ‘stomach’ speech ‘distasteful’ to him

(The Center Square) – Cobb County Sheriff Craig Owens’ wife cannot eat mayonnaise on her Whopper but the sheriff cannot “stomach distasteful” speech, according to a federal lawsuit.

David Cavender, a Republican who lost to Owens in the Nov. 5 election, and two Cobb County residents are suing the sheriff in U.S. District Court, saying they censored comments on the official Facebook page of the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office.

It started in 2023 when a video of Owens complaining about his order at a local Burger King was shared on social media. The sheriff, not in uniform, called deputies to the location and asked them to get the manager’s name. The deputies used their emergency lights when responding.

The video was shared in October, shortly before the election.

Cavender and Cobb County residents Michael Dondelinger and Michele Beagle said in the federal lawsuit that Owens began restricting comments on the incident and other criticism on the Facebook page of the Sheriff’s Office beginning Oct. 29. Dondelinger would have been Cavender’s chief deputy if he elected.

“Instead of upholding the First Amendment and stomaching speech he found personally distasteful, Owens decided instead to utilize the powers of his office to censor the speech of Plaintiffs, and others, based on viewpoint,” the lawsuit says.

Owens is accused of blocking critical Facebook posts and people when he could have set standards for posting, the plaintiffs said in the lawsuit. The social media blocks caused “ongoing injury” and violated their First and 14th Amendment rights they said.

The sheriff’s office directed people to its mobile app in a Nov. 1 post.

“To keep our posts focused on community safety updates and educational info, we’ve turned off the comments feature,” the post said. “Although Facebook may show comments as ‘limited,’ no comments will be allowed.”

The plaintiffs are asking for a jury trial and damages “in an amount of $3.50 or any other amount to be determined by jurors.” They are also asking the court for an injunction that will keep Owens from restricting the Facebook account.

Owens defeated Cavender to win his second term as sheriff with just over 56% of the vote to Cavender’s nearly 44%.

In an October interview with WSB-TV, Owens said he was upset about the order because mayonnaise would make his wife sick.

“I thought the best thing to do was to call a deputy,” Owens told the Atlanta television station. “In hindsight, I probably should have just drove off and took the bad service and left and came back another day.”