Four Clay County deputies fired for sexting

LIBERTY, Mo. - Sexting, racy conversations and horseplay led to five Clay County, Mo., deputies losing their jobs.

Clay County Sheriff Bob Boydston said a female deputy working in the detention facility in Liberty, Mo., quit in late August. He said she later brought forth accusations of sexual harassment in the workplace, including inappropriate conversations and lewd text messages occurring over the past year.

"I'm talking obscene and disgusting," Boydston said. "Right now I'm not really sure what the definition of 'pornographic' is, but these went well beyond any definition that I've seen."

Brandon Ehlen, Joshua Gourdouze, Jason Lomonte and Jack Matney were all let go within the past few weeks.

"They violated those protocols, so they're accountable to me and I chose to terminate them," Boydston said.

The sheriff said the woman's accusations have been verified. He said some deputies admitted to it, but others failed polygraph tests.

Boydston said the investigation is ongoing, and he expects more employees to be disciplined for similar incidents both related to and outside of this case.

Jack Matney Sr. is the father of one of the deputies and said the accusations are out of his son's character.

"It's pretty much someone else's word against somebody else's word. 'He said, she said' type of deal," Matney said.

He said his 24-year-old son, Jack Jr., is happily married with a child. Matney believes the accusations are the product of typical horseplay at the work place. Now his son is fighting for his job.

"All this could ruin his future," he said.

Criminal charges have not been filed yet, but the accuser has filed a complaint with the Missouri Human Rights Commission.

Boydston said his office is cooperating with the investigation and is working to make the sheriff's department a better work environment.