A Florida sheriff schooled a “woke” reporter who asked him during a press conference why police don’t take a soft-on-crime approach to violent criminals.
This week, Polk County’s infamous Sheriff Grady Judd announced a new task force he’s established to tackle violent street crime.
He made the announcement during a press conference on the recent arrest of an alleged murderer.
Grady provided detailed information about the arrest of La’Darion Chandler for allegedly shooting 33-year-old John McGee.
McGee was shot in the back in December of 2022 and was expected to recover, as reported by FOX 13 Tampa Bay.
However, McGee died on January 9th after refusing medication doctors said was needed to heal.
During the presser, Judd was asked why police don’t “help gang members” instead of arresting them.
“It strikes me that the victim has a mother that cared about him, didn’t want him in that life anymore,” the reporter said to Grady.
“We have this 19-year-old who’s young….how does the gang task force try to get young people, young kids, not to go into this life.”
The reporter’s question about taking a warm and fuzzy approach to violent gang bangers didn’t sit well with the sheriff.
Grady fired back at the question: “Listen, that’s a bunch of hooey…that soft and cuddly feeling, ‘we’re gonna hug a thug and if we give them another popsicle and an icy and a day out at the park they’re gonna be good….’ ”
“Y’all need to wake up,” he asserted.
“These dudes are taking y’all for fools.
“These are hardcore gangsters, gang bangers.
“They’ll eat your ice cream on Saturday and shoot up their rivals on Saturday night…and smile at you in the meantime.
“So at the end of the day, it all starts with parenting at home when they’re young and keeping them away from this lifestyle.
“But when we’re having these ‘neighborhood events’ for these 15, 16, 17-year-old hardcore gang bangers…they’re smiling at you in the daytime and going up and dressing like this at night (the Sheriff shows a teen in gang banger garb.)”
“This kind of person, I’m not talking about everybody, this kind of person is paying no attention.”
WATCH:
Sheriff Judd has built a reputation on his straight-talking, tough-on-crime approach.
During the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, Judd told homeowners facing looters during the tragedy, “I would highly suggest that if a looter breaks into your home, comes into your home while you’re there to steal stuff, that you take your gun and you shoot him – you shoot him so he looks like grated cheese.”
On the failures of law enforcement to protect children in Uvalde, Texas, Judd said: “If you come to a school in this county, armed, we’re going to do our best through either our guardians, our school resource officers, or our school resource deputy sheriffs to eliminate the threat outside of the school before they ever get to the children.
“We’re trained to do that.”
While he was announcing the arrest of a “tough” rapper, Judd revealed that the suspect “cried like a baby” when he was charged with murder.
