A&E Loses Police Support Over Duck Dynasty

Sheriff Pulls Department From ‘Duck Dynasty’ Filming Over First Amendment Violations

23 December, 2013 / by Website Editor / in Freedom

A local sheriff in Georgia’s Douglas County has pulled his entire department from the filming of Duck Dynasty, declaring they will no longer assist as A&E after the First Amendment violations and suspension against Phil Robertson. Douglas County Sheriff Phil Miller made the announcement on his Facebook page over the weekend and said that it was “time for someone other than Hollywood and the news media to stand up for what is right.”

Miller said that A&E’s suspension of Robertson for his comments about homosexuality in a GQ interview was “unreasonable” and could not be tolerated by him. “I am sure A&E made what they believe is a good business decision. Many people who disagree with A&E might choose to remain silent and there was a time when I might have done the same, but no longer,” he wrote. “A&E has produced more than a half dozen programs with the assistance of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. They will not do any more with my assistance while I am sheriff.”

However, his department may not have even been needed for the show because there may not be another season. Robertson’s family has expressed outrage over their patriarch’s First Amendment rights being violated and have refused to film the show without him. “While some of Phil’s unfiltered comments to the reporter were coarse, his beliefs are grounded in the teachings of the Bible. Phil would never incite or encourage hate,” read a statement from his family on the Duck Commander website. “We are disappointed that Phil has been placed on hiatus for expressing his faith, which is his constitutionally protected right. We have had a successful working relationship with A&E but, as a family, we cannot imagine the show going forward without our patriarch at the helm. We are in discussions with A&E to see what that means for the future of Duck Dynasty.”

After A&E indefinitely suspended the reality star, numerous social media petitions circulated to get him back on the air. A Change.org petition to bring Robertson back to Duck Dynasty has collected over 115,000 signatures, while the Facebook page “Bring Back Phil Robertson” has over one million likes. The petition states that, “There is a difference between respecting someone rights to exercise free will and imposing on others what we believe. Phil has done nothing more than state what he believes in. Just because homosexuals do not agree, does not mean Mr. Robertson needs to be suspended.”