Sheriff Responds to McGowan's Arrest
Sheriff Roger Garrison denies that the school system spokesman was at his house the night he was arrested for DUI.
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Mike McGowan was arrested for his third DUI on the night of Dec. 17 and, according to the police report, told deputies that he was coming from Sheriff Roger Garrison’s house and was wearing the sheriff’s pants.
Garrison said that was absolutely not true.
“I am very disappointed that he used my name to leverage his bad position,” Garrison said. “But I’m very glad the deputies did their job and performed very professionally and were not influenced by his comments that he knew me.”
McGowan stayed at Garrison’s house two nights before—the night an ice storm hit the county—after getting stranded in Canton, Garrison said.
Garrison said he last saw McGowan on the morning of Dec. 16 when he left the sheriff’s house after borrowing fresh clothes.
He said he assumed that McGowan was going to work because there was some confusion about whether school would be called off that day because of bad weather.
McGowan now is under an "extended leave of absence without pay," according to a statement Cherokee School Superintendent Frank Petruzielo released Friday.
Check back with Patch for continuing coverage of this story.
Steve
7:49 pm on Saturday, January 8, 2011
I guess working for the school system, they are somehow extending him a learning curve? Reminds me of something Bush said, "fool me once, blah, blah, blah, fool me twice, etc. etc." Isn't there like a 3 strikes rule somewhere in this?
Jessie Gable
8:23 pm on Saturday, January 8, 2011
Thanks for the comment, Steve. I've heard from several sources that the consequences are supposed to get progressively worse with each arrest, but I'm still looking for the exact law that says what should happen in this case.
David
9:47 pm on Saturday, January 8, 2011
The man is an embarrassment to himself. The embarrassment to our county is on Dr. Frank R. Petruzielo's hands. He is the idiot here. He is the man who wants all the credit when something good happens, so why not get all the credit for allowing him to stay on the payroll after 2 DUI's. Now a third and he gets to pick his own punishment??? What is wrong with this picture??? He is still being covered by tax payers money with respect to his insurance, etc. even if he is not getting a regular paycheck. If a student was arrested and charged with anything is guilty until proven innocent. If they are arrested twice, they are kicked out of school. A third time? Forget it.
So why is this idiot still employed by the school system? The whole thing is a joke. NOW IS A GOOD TIME TO CHANGE THE PROCESS AND START ELECTING THE SUPERINTENDENT ONCE AGAIN!
In a down economy, let's look at some interesting numbers for Fiscal year 2010. While we all struggle here are what these idiots made that we paid for. And what are we getting for this money?
Dr. Frank R. Petruzielo - $213,053.14 plus over $3,000 in travel expenses
Michael McGowan - $101,112.00 That is a lot of beer and trousers folks.
Scott Johnson
10:37 am on Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Petruzielo, as well as Read, Chapman, and other school board members, were well aware of McGowan's previous DUI arrests. They did nothing. That, in my eyes, makes them as guilty as McGowan. They're the ultimate enablers, and they've done us all a disservice by keeping this drunken sot in a position of responsibility.
How many times did this man drive under the influence WITHOUT getting caught? How many times was he caught, but never arrested due to his friendship with Sheriff Garrison?
Are people generally aware that Roger Garrison's wife is Mike McGowan's secretary?
It's time to clean house -- McGowan needs to be out on his ear, with a kick in his borrowed Sheriff's pants to help him along.
sclctvist
1:55 pm on Thursday, March 3, 2011
What ever happened to personal responsibility? The Board and Superintendent should immediately dimiss him from employment with the school system.