A 28-year veteran of the Scott County Sheriff’s Department is fighting to keep his rank of sergeant. Mark Benson was suspended, ordered to attend sensitivity training and demoted to deputy all because of a comment he made in January at a crime scene in LeClaire. A woman who was upset about her boyfriend jumping off the Interstate-80 bridge reportedly said she would put on a wetsuit to conduct a search. Benson allegedly said seeing that was one of his “fantasies.” He says his comment was sarcastic and he didn’t mean for the woman to take it the wrong way and he’s learned from his mistake. “I’ll have to be more professional than I was,” Benson says. The attorney for Scott County says Benson doesn’t understand the effect his words have on other people. A decision from the Civil Service Commission could come next week.
