Audio captures Okla. county officials discussing killing reporter, hanging Black people, report says; governor calls for resignations

A sheriff, one of his investigators and a county commissioner in southeast Oklahoma are accused by a newspaper of discussing killing a local reporter and lamenting that modern justice no longer includes hanging Black people.

The explosive accusations were published this week in the McCurtain Gazette-News, and now the state's governor is calling for resignations in connection to the claims.

According to the newspaper, McCurtain County Sheriff Kevin Clardy, investigator Alicia Manning and District 2 Commissioner Mark Jennings were part of an impromptu discussion after the March 6 meeting of the county Board of Commissioners.

The Gazette, a print-only newspaper, reported it has the full audio recording of the discussion. The FBI and the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office also have copies of the recording, according to the newspaper.

A portion of the recordings was released online over the weekend, and though the audio matched some of the quoted material in the story, The Oklahoman, part of the USA TODAY Network, could not independently identify the speakers in the recordings.

None of the people who were recorded could immediately be reached for comment.

Chris Willingham, the reporter for the Gazette who was discussed in recordings and the author of the article, declined to comment, citing ongoing litigation between himself and the sheriff's office.

During the discussion, which was recorded without the trio knowing, the Gazette reported Manning saying she needed to take some packages to a shipping center near the newspaper’s office. She expressed concern about what could happen if Willingham walked out of the newspaper’s office, according to the newspaper.

McCurtain County, in the southeastern corner of Oklahoma, has a population just over 30,000 people, according to a July 2022 Census estimate.

What the recordings capture

According to the Gazette, Willingham that day had filed a defamation lawsuit against the sheriff’s office, Manning and the Board of County Commissioners. 

The lawsuit claims were published in the Gazette about three months ago when the initial tort claim was filed, according to the newspaper’s report.

“Oh, you’re talking about you can’t control yourself?” Jennings allegedly said.

In response, Manning is accused of saying:

“Yeah, I ain’t worried about what he’s gonna do to me. I’m worried about what I might do to him.”

Jennings replied that his 86-year-old father, in response to an opinion published in the newspaper, once “started to go down there and just kill him,” according to the Gazette.

“I know where two big, deep holes are here if you ever need them,” Jennings allegedly said.

Clardy, the sheriff, allegedly said he had the equipment.

“I’ve got an excavator,” Clardy is accused of saying.

“Well, these are already pre-dug,” Jennings allegedly said.

Jennings allegedly talked about knowing hitmen in Louisiana.  A brief discussion about assaulting local judges followed, according to the Gazette.

Jennings, the commissioner, then discussed how many people might run for sheriff, according to the newspaper story, and how "a damned Black guy" could be beaten and thrown into jail "back in the day."

Clardy responded by saying, “Yeah, it’s not like that no more," the newspaper reported.

Jennings then said Black people have more rights than others, according to the Gazette.

“Take them down to Mud Creek and hang them up with damned rope,” he is accused of saying. “But you can’t do that anymore. They’ve got more rights than we’ve got.”

Governor calls for resignations

On Sunday, Gov. Kevin Stitt issued a statement calling for the resignation of multiple McCurtain County officials after the comments surfaced, multiple local outlets reported.

Stitt's office could not immediately be reached by USA TODAY on Monday morning.

Stitt asked Clardy, Jennings, Manning and Jail Administrator Larry Hendrix to submit resignations after "abhorrent comments recorded after a county commissioners' meeting on March 6th," News Channel 6 reported.

"I am both appalled and disheartened to hear of the horrid comments made by officials in McCurtain County. There is simply no place for such hateful rhetoric in the state of Oklahoma, especially by those that serve to represent the community through their respective office. I will not stand idly by while this takes place," the outlet reported Stitt saying.

Stitt said he will call on the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation to investigate.

Protests underway

Protesters were gathering early Monday in front of the McCurtain County Commissioner’s office in response to the comments, local outlet KTAL reported.

People in the crowd held signs stating “Silence is NOT an option” and “Resign Now!”

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma sheriff, commissioner accused of discussing killing reporter