Facebook posts on ex-Casper officer’s page show focus on Seton House before fight | National News
Posts on the Facebook page of former Casper Police Officer Jesse Jones show that he emailed the headmaster of Seton House the day before after he allegedly gouged out the eye of a man outside the facility following an altercation started while he was off duty protesting his vaccination mandate.
While the screenshot posted to Jones’s page shows just a few snippets of a September 30 exchange with director Carrie Reece, the first email in the mail, apparently from Jones, begins with, “You all should be ashamed of yourselves.”
“Please stop harassing us,” read an email from Reece included in the image.
A screenshot of former Casper Police Officer Jesse Jones’ Facebook account showing an apparent email exchange between Jones and Seton House principal Carrie Reece, released on September 30.
Jones, who was with the department for five years, was arrested last Tuesday on suspicion of reckless endangerment following a state investigation into the incident. The Star-Tribune attempted to contact him for this story using a phone number he gave when he first appeared in court. He did not respond to two messages.
Court documents in Jones’ case state that when Reece reported Jones’ protest to police, she also mentioned receiving “threatening emails” from him. The then-official’s Facebook post with emails also urged others to email the leadership of Seton House.
Another post on Jones’ Facebook account shows him standing outside Seton House on October 1, the day of the fight, holding a sign that read “I will not comply”.
“The time for talking is over. If you interact with this post, share it,” reads the caption. “Join me again at 1pm today at 910 N Durbin, Casper, the Seton House homeless shelter. They just announced they’re going to get the Vaxxx or hit the road. No more sitting around.”
Court documents filed last week allege Jones protested the mandate alone on Oct. 1 when the director’s husband approached him. According to the affidavit of probable cause relating to Jones’ arrest, an inquest found that the other man started the fight but Jones gouged out the man’s right eye after he stopped posing a threat to Jones.
The former detective is now facing charges of negligent bodily harm. He pleaded not guilty in a first appearance Tuesday in Natrona County District Court and was released from prison in less than a day, posting $500 bail.
On September 30, the day before the fight, several posts on Jones’ Facebook page mentioned Seton House’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Seton House operates a self-sufficiency program and provides housing for homeless single parents.
The Facebook posts showed that Jones had also come to the picket line that day.
“It’s about bringing people down. The period of silence is over,” reads the post, which links to a K2 Radio news article about the facility’s mandate. “It’s up to all of us to make it known that we will not put up with this crap. All this and because of an election fraud.”
A screenshot of a September 30 post of former Casper Police Officer Jesse Jones’ Facebook account linking to a story about K2 Radio’s Seton House vaccination mandate.
Another post from the day, referencing the same story, says that “beaten women lose their housing if they don’t comply with the mandate” and urged protesters to respond to the “emergency” immediately.
Reece told K2 radio at the time that 15 of the 22 families living at Seton House’s facilities were at least partially vaccinated a month before the mandate went into effect and that the organization had not lost any customers as a result of the requirement. She declined to comment on Friday.
Other posts and comments from Jones’ account, which has since been deactivated, show that he is also critical of vaccination mandates at other organizations.
“Time to unite people,” reads a post on Facebook on Oct. 13. “First our soldiers, second banner, third Seton house, now UWYO. Yours is next!! If you don’t know how to help, there are answers. Just ask.”
A screenshot of a September 30 post on the Facebook account of former Casper Police Officer Jesse Jones.
Banner is an apparent reference to the vaccination mandate that Banner Health requires at its four Wyoming hospitals, including Casper’s Wyoming Medical Center.
Jones was placed on administrative leave immediately after the fight while the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation investigated the incident.
The Casper Police Department says it began the termination process against Jones on Dec. 14 after an internal investigation found his actions did not comply with the agency’s code of conduct. Before that process was complete, Jones resigned from his position on January 7. Department spokeswoman Rebekah Ladd declined to comment further on the case on Friday.
A Star Tribune review of internal CPD emails to and from Jones’ account in the weeks surrounding the fight found no mention of vaccination orders or protests.
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