Former Bluffton cop faced minor discipline for Facebook comments after Jan. 6 insurrection
A former Bluffton Police officer faced minor discipline in the department after a Facebook controversy regarding a local musician’s presence at the U.S. Capitol when riots erupted Jan. 6.
Oscar Frazier Jr., the brother of Bluffton Town Council member Bridgette Frazier, was found to have violated town policy on social media and internet use, according to a Jan. 27 memo by Bluffton Police Chief Stephenie Price.
Price wrote that Frazier would receive “informal counseling” for the violation. Capt. Scott Chandler said on Thursday that informal counseling is when employees have to meet with their supervisor and go over an incident. He wasn’t aware of any further discipline Frazier faced beyond counseling in this case.
Frazier resigned from the department on Oct. 7. His resignation was unrelated to the town policy investigation, according to his officer file.
Bluffton musician and anti-mask activist Whitley Deputy had attended former President Donald Trump’s Jan. 6 rally in Washington, D.C., after which a mob invaded the Capitol building and disrupted a joint session of Congress in the process of certifying President Joe Biden’s election.
Nearly 700 people have been charged in the riot, which resulted in 150 police officers injured and five dead.
Deputy said he attended the rally with his brother, Savannah-based musician Zach Deputy, and “walked to the Capitol building afterward. He said he did not storm the building.
The photo he posted of himself at the rally resulted in him losing wages, he claimed. In other posts online, Deputy alleged restaurants wouldn’t book him anymore due to his political beliefs.
In a screenshot of a social media comment shared widely online in January, Bridgette Frazier appeared to encourage people to call a Hilton Head restaurant to drop Deputy as a performer.
“We should all be calling Ruby Lee’s and asking they remove him from their performers list,” the comment said.
She confirmed the comment to a reporter earlier this year. Frazier said her post was in response to people who called for a boycott of the restaurant because it booked Deputy.
‘I wasn’t threatening’
The internal affairs investigation showed Bridgette Frazier received profane messages on Facebook as a result of her comment about Deputy.
One message called the council member a “racist a**” and another plainly said, “f*** you.”
On Jan. 9, Frazier posted the messages on Facebook, and that is when her brother became involved.
“I’m prepared,” Oscar Frazier Jr. commented.
A family friend of the Fraziers wrote in a comment, “I’m home and doing knock outs for $50.”
Bridgette Frazier tagged her brother in response and said, “You and your buddy Oscar James can do a tag team. My money’s on ya’ll.”
“Facts,” Oscar Frazier Jr. wrote in affirmation.
Commenters online accused them of threatening Deputy. Bridgette Frazier previously said the remarks were taken out of context.
In the aftermath, an online petition was created to remove Bridgette Frazier from office for “inciting violence.” Another petition, in a Google form, said, “Not only did she cost a Bluffton citizen his job, she also incited violence toward this man.”
In emails attached to the investigation, former Bluffton Town Manager Marc Orlando sent the form to Price on Jan. 9 with the subject line “For Discussion.”
The following day, Price started an internal investigation into Oscar Frazier Jr.’s comments.
In the report, Bridgette Frazier and the family friend told internal investigators their comments were a joke. Oscar Frazier Jr. and the family friend called themselves a “tag team” because they used to wrestle together as children, according to the documents.
“I wasn’t threatening. No,” Oscar Frazier Jr. said in a written response to the investigation. He implied his sister asked police for more frequent patrols at her house due to the threats against her.
Oscar Frazier Jr. did not respond to two Facebook messages sent Thursday.
A reporter left a voicemail for Bridgette Frazier and sent her a text message on Thursday.
“All I have to say is that I hope Bridgette and her family are doing well,” Deputy said in a text on Thursday.
Oscar Frazier Jr. is among a slew of Bluffton officers who have resigned this year, some citing Price’s leadership as the reason. Price, however, said retention has been difficult because of the challenging climate for police officers and increased scrutiny they receive.
