The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

‘Clearly a Fanatic of Some Type’

Posted on | April 13, 2025 | 12 Comments

Robert Shawn Detherow

Flagler County, Florida, is a wonderful place with many wonderful people, including Sheriff Rick Staly, who is one of the most experienced law-enforcement officers in the entire United States. Sheriff Staly first became a cop in 1975 in Oviedo right out of high school, then spent a year with the Altamonte Springs Police Department before becoming a deputy in Orange County, where he rose through the ranks for more than 20 years before retiring as the No. 2 man in the department in 2001.

Staly formed a private security company, then sold it, and decided to return to law enforcement in Flagler County, where he has been elected sheriff three times since 2016. During his 50-year career, Sheriff Staly has probably seen a lot of crazy things, but perhaps none as crazy as the standoff last June in the town of Palm Coast. It began just after dawn on the morning of June 5, with “a disturbance call on Forsythe Lane in reference to an individual who had blocked the road with ‘junk’ and was playing loud music.” Forsythe Lane is a middle-class development just a mile or so inland from the beach. It’s a pleasant-looking neighborhood, and most people would consider themselves extremely fortunate to live there, with the palm trees and sunshine. But most people are not insane, which was the problem with 55-year-old Robert Shawn Detherow.

Video of the resulting incident has been uploaded to YouTube, and you can see a female deputy arrive to encounter this scene:

Detherow had apparently emptied out his house, strewing his possessions in the front yard and blocking the street. And as for the neighbor’s complaint of “playing loud music,” shortly after the deputy steps out of her vehicle, Robert Detherow’s stereo begins blasting the Hoyt Axton version of a very old song:

Oh, I’m a good old Rebel,
Now that’s just what I am.
For this Yankee nation
I do not give a damn.
I’m glad I fought against her,
I only wish we’d won.
I ain’t asked any pardon
For anything I’ve done.

That song was first published as a poem in 1867, written by Confederate Maj. James Innes Randolph. Far be it from me to disdain any expression of Southern pride, but if you’re a sheriff’s deputy responding to a disturbance call and hear that song? Not a good omen.

Robert Detherow was bonkers, berserk, demented, deranged, daffy, wacky, off his rocker, non compos mentis, nuttier than a Snickers bar, a few fries short of a Happy Meal and cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs.

The deputy wisely called for backup. There is some explanation of Detherow’s mental condition. He has claimed to be a military veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), although this information was not verified. He had once been employed by Flagler County, but quit in 2021. And in March 2024, just three months before this incident, Detherow’s 22-year-old son had been arrested for stabbing a man in an argument about religion at a Circle K convenience store.

In a press release, the sheriff’s department said that, due to the prior investigation of the son’s crime, deputies knew that Detherow “had an arsenal of firearms in his home.” Furthermore, investigators “located disturbing videos Detherow made and posted to his Facebook profile and YouTube channel in the previous few days alluding to ‘suicide by cop’ and becoming a martyr.” The title of that video is “Come to my house and arrest me Rick Staley” [sic] and shows Detherow standing in his living room, wearing a Confederate cap and waving a Bible around while claiming that his Fourth Amendment rights have been violated.

What ensued was a five-hour standoff that, thank God, ended without anyone getting hurt. Afterwards, Sheriff Staly spoke to the media:

“I would describe [Detherow] as a religious fanatic, to some degree one of these ‘sovereign citizens.’ . . . He’s clearly a fanatic of some type and I’m sure that the neighborhood is glad that he’s been apprehended.”

At a court hearing about a week later, Detherow seemed sufficiently self-aware to admit he was crazy as a loon:

After his arrest, Detherow unleashed a string of verbal attacks on the arresting deputy.
“I don’t know what I said. I was having a psychotic break. Obviously I needed help,” Detherow said, after Assistant State Attorney Jason Lewis asked him if he’d threatened the life of Sheriff’s deputy Necole Marsan, if he’d threatened to dismember her, rape her and torture her for billions of years. . . .
“The allegations with regard to this incident describe behavior that’s not only dangerous, but completely irrational,” [Circuit Judge Terence Perkins] said. Detherow “chose to escalate the response by law enforcement for no apparent reason in ways that not only put the community in danger and the law enforcement officers specifically, but put him in danger, for reasons that relate to his post traumatic stress is what I’ve heard.” . . .
Perkins said he had no evidence regarding Detherow’s PTSD, his mental health history or any psychiatric issues. His attorney presented none. . . .
“My obligation is to keep the community, law enforcement and the defendant safe,” Perkins said. “I’m not going to risk this type of incident happening again . . .”

At that point, the judge denied bail for Detherow. Jail records indicate that Detherow was released in September on $34,000 bond, and so far there’s been no further news on the case. However, in the case of Detherow’s son — accused of stabbing a man at the Circle K — the charges were thrown out in a “startling” ruling under Florida’s “stand your ground” law. It turns out that there was no surveillance video of the incident, and after hearing testimony from everyone involved, the judge decided that the younger Detherow’s testimony was most credible, raising a self-defense claim that could not be disproven. That’s . . . crazy.

On the other hand, maybe “this Yankee nation” is not all bad. Maybe the “religious fanatic” and his son (who was reading his Bible on the picnic table next to Circle K before the stabbing happened) got some divine intervention. Maybe there is still hope for justice in America.

We could speculate on the cosmic implications of all this, but in the end we are certain of only one thing: Crazy People Are Dangerous.



 

Shop Electronics at Amazon

Save on Groceries and Everyday Essentials

Shop Amazon Basics

Office & School Supplies

Category: Crime, Florida

Comments