The 13 deputies in the Cedar County Sheriff’s Office have publicly called for Cedar County Attorney Jeff Renander to step down.
On Feb. 20, the Advocate News received a memo from the Cedar County Sheriff’s Office, signed by all 13 deputies, saying the following:
"Due to a wide range of ongoing concerns and issues, the deputies of the Cedar County Sheriff’s Office feel compelled to issue a vote of NO CONFIDENCE against Cedar County Attorney Jeff Renander. There have been growing concerns about Cedar County Attorney Renander’s handling of criminal cases, particularly sex abuse cases. It has come to our attention that Cedar County Attorney Renander made egregiously inappropriate comments to the victim of a sexual abuse case he recently handled. It has been shocking to hear of examples when Cedar County Attorney Renander has victim shamed, as well as minimize the traumatic experiences of multiple sexual abuse victims, to include child sexual abuse victims. The lack of professionalism and self-awareness exhibited by Cedar County Attorney Renander is not only shocking, but causes the victims of sexual abuse in Cedar County to be re-victimized, and could very well deter other victims from coming forward. It is our position that it is in the public’s best interest, for public safety, that Jeff Renander vacates his office."
The Cedar County Sheriff’s Office is comprised of Sheriff Warren Wethington and 13 deputies. While Wethington’s signature was not on the memo, all 13 deputies signed it, including: Matt Jackson, Austin Sorgenfrey, Dustin Fritz, Bode Koranda, Alex Koch, Scott McGlaughlin, Joseph McNeill, Jeffrey Smith, Kevin Knoche, Cory Barclay, Paul Kime, Jay Johnson and Matthew Fields.
An email from the Advocate News to Renander looking for comment was not responded to by press time. In a Feb. 26 story in the Tipton Conservative, it was noted that Renander had no plans of stepping down.