A state prosecutor is investigating Athens County Sheriff Pat Kelly for allegations of assault 42 days before voters will decide if he will be sheriff for another four years.
David Jenkinson of Albany said that Saturday, he was passing out flyers after a fundraising event for Kelly’s re-election in Jacksonville. He said that Kelly confronted him about the fliers and then assaulted him.
Kelly denied assaulting Jenkinson and said the accusations are politically motivated.
The fliers Jenkinson was passing out contained excerpts from an Athens News story about an alleged rape accusing Kelly’s stepson. Jenkinson said his intentions were to get the investigation regarding Kelly’s stepson’s case reopened.
“I told him (the flier) was just going to make him upset,” Jenkinson said. Kelly threatened to arrest him if he didn’t give him a flier, Jenkinson said.
After Kelly got a flier, Jenkinson said Kelly stuffed the flier in Jenkinson’s left shirt pocket, which he said caused him pain because he has cancer in his right breast.
On Tuesday, Kelly denied assaulting Jenkinson but wouldn’t comment about whether he had touched him. Kelly said Jenkinson was campaigning for Steve Kane, Kelly’s Republican challenger in the upcoming election for Athens County Sheriff.
“It’s a low-class type of campaigning,” Kelly said. “For four years, we’ve had no problems in this office and then 40 days before the election, this starts. I will not participate in it.”
But Kane said he doesn’t know what Jenkinson was doing in Jacksonville and denied that he worked for the campaign. Jenkinson also said he was not part of Kane’s campaign.
“I am tired of Pat Kelly accusing me of dirty politics for things that he does. I run a very clean campaign,” Kane said. “Am I … saying Kelly did it? No. Nor am I accusing him of it.”
Jenkinson filed a report with the Jacksonville Police Department Saturday afternoon, Jacksonville Police Chief Chris Smith said. Smith handed the case over to Blackburn’s office at about 8:30 p.m. Monday.
Blackburn’s office handed the case to Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine for investigation because Blackburn said he has an inherent conflict of interest in the alleged incident due to the relationship with the prosecutor’s and sheriff’s offices, according to a letter released by Blackburn’s office.
In his request to the attorney general, Blackburn asked for the case to be expedited because of the upcoming election.
“Right now, there’s an allegation that’s either true or false,” Blackburn said. “I would hope that there would be some knowledge within a few weeks, whether that is a closed case or charged case.”
Evidence in the case includes a 911 call, an Athens County Sheriff’s Office report, a narrative from Blackburn’s investigator, evidence provided by Jenkinson and a file from Jacksonville Police, according to Blackburn’s letter.
Blackburn said the case is in the hands of the attorney general’s office and that he couldn’t say if an official complaint existed within the evidence his office had prior to turning over the case.
“If I had those documents with me, I would say they are public record,” Blackburn said. “But I don’t.”
Because no official charges were made, Kelly said Blackburn preemptively got the attorney general’s office involved, adding that he hadn’t received an official complaint from anyone.
Kelly said he has about four or five witnesses to back his claim that there was no assault and that no one from the attorney general’s office had contacted him.
“I’m disappointed,” Kelly said. “This prosecutor knows better than this.”
jj360410@ohiou.edu
— Marika Lee and Xander Zellner contributed to this article.
