Citizen Report No. 1668112274 - 785179487

Christopher Bryant
100 South Washington
Ardmore, Oklahoma 73401

Date of Offense

November 10, 2022

Offense(s)

 

Supporting Document(s)

Attorney FB Post 1
Attorney FB Post 2

Statement

CLEET #: 0022498

License Type: Fulltime Peace Officer

License Status: Active

License Effective Date: 08/18/2017

License Expiry Date: N/A

THIS REPORT CORRESPONDS WITH Citizen Report No. 1668041429 - 2075670572!

In response to the discovery of a hidden camera inside the jails attorney meeting room, Sheriff Bryant offered public statements that were likely false.   Defense Attorney, Jason May, posted an update on his Facebook Page  that stated: 

"Carter County Sheriff Chris Bryant issued a statement on November 9th, admitting that a recording device was installed in the attorney room at the jail. Bryant claims that the device has been installed in the room since 2002, and that it was placed there by former Carter County Sheriff Harvey Burkhart, who happens to be Bryant’s ex father-in-law and is also deceased.

Bryant also admitted in his statement to tampering with a crime scene, saying that he removed the device and turned it over to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. This action is a direct violation of law enforcement protocols as that room should have been secured until proper authorities could fully examine the device.

There are several aspects of Bryant’s statement that appear to be false. First, Bryant claims that he had no knowledge of the device until after my press release was issued on November 9th. However, this doesn’t explain why the missing screw that exposed the camera lens was present at the time I notified the Attorney General’s Office on November 3rd, but had been replaced to conceal the lens when I inspected the fixture again on November 8th. Bryant, or someone else with access to the attorney room, obviously replaced that screw in order to conceal the camera, but left the recording device in place until it was “discovered” by Bryant on November 9th.

Bryant’s assertion that the device had been there for twenty years without his knowledge also seems strange since fluorescent tube bulbs like those used in the attorney room light fixture have an average life expectancy of 9-12 months. Are we supposed to believe that during the approximately 20-27 times that those bulbs would have been replaced in the last two decades no one noticed the obvious recording device attached to the fixture?" 

The post goes on to state that a witness (a former CCSO employee) reached out to the attorney to confirm that Sheriff Bryant was directly notified by the employee, who had previously discovered the recording device, and the employee was told by Sheriff Bryant to "not tell anyone else about it".  

SEE ALSO - RELATED REPORTS:

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Definition of Offense(s)

False Statements

False statements by a police officer fall under the category of police misconduct and refer to instances where a police officer deliberately makes false or misleading statements under oath, in official reports, or in any other official capacity.

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