Holly MatkinMonroe County, TN – A veteran Monroe County sheriff’s deputy has been suspended without pay for 30 days after a video showing him yelling a racial slur surfaced online.
Monroe County Sheriff Tommy Jones confirmed on Monday that Deputy Billy Littleton, an eight-year veteran of the sheriff’s office, confessed that he is the man heard yelling “n—-r” in a cell phone clip that was recently posted to social media, WBIR reported.
Deputy Littleton said he was off duty when the video was recorded more than a year ago, according to the news outlet.
The brief clip showed Deputy Littleton sitting the back seat of a car as a woman who appeared to be recording the scene laughed.
“F—king n—-rs!” he yelled out the window at one point.
It is unclear whether or not anyone was outside the car at the time of his outburst.
Sheriff Jones said he contacted Deputy Littleton after the footage was sent to him on the morning of Sept. 4, WBIR reported.
The deputy then admitted he was the person in the video, the sheriff confirmed.
Hey @wbir check this out.
This is a good ol officer from our very own Monroe County Sheriff's Office.
Ladies and gentlemen, officer Billy Littleton 🤡 pic.twitter.com/hncQYdnETG— amarahmae (@amarahmae) September 4, 2021
Deputy Littleton has since been suspended without pay for a period of 30 days, and will be on probation for one year, Sheriff Jones told WBIR.
If he violates any department policies during that 12-month period, he will automatically be fired, according to the news outlet.
Deputy Littleton will also be required to attended racial sensitivity training and will not be considered for promotion to the rank of sergeant, Sheriff Jones said.
“I’m highly appalled by the language, language that is not supported by the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department and it will not be tolerated,” the sheriff said in a statement on Monday. “I want to maintain the trust of Monroe County, we do take this very seriously, we will do everything to change this behavior and to do our due diligence… this is not something that we are going to ignore, we have to handle it, we owe that to our citizens.”
Sheriff Jones said Deputy Littleton’s actions have had a negative impact on the entire department, WBIR reported.
Deputy Littleton’s attorneys noted in a statement released Wednesday that he has taken responsibility for his words.
“Mr. Littleton has owned up to what he said on the video that was created over one year ago, which was just recently posted on social media,” the statement read.
The attorneys pointed out Deputy Littleton is a respected law enforcement officer who has served the community with distinction over the past eight years.
“He has received commendations and other recognitions for his outstanding service as a deputy sheriff,” they added. “Mr. Littleton has always strived to enforce the laws without bias or prejudice and to treat people with dignity, fairly and respectfully. He is deeply remorseful for his actions and gives his most sincere apologies to all of the citizens of Monroe County.”
Deputy Littleton has “accepted the consequences” of his actions and is working “to be a better person,” according to the statement.
“[He] will take these next 30 days to further reflect on his actions in order to better serve the citizens of Monroe County,” the attorneys said.
