Trump and the Case of the Second Amendment Sheriff
31st May 2025
I did a scan of the news coverage, and our Daily Signal column reporting on the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association petitioning the president for the pardon was the only one I could find that delved into Jenkins’ court proceedings and the judge’s restrictions on the sheriff’s defense. The judge limited Jenkins’ ability to present contradicting testimony and the timeline of events that preceded the Department of Justice’s “sting operation” against him.
To many, that sting operation seemed intended to ensnare the sheriff for joining other Virginia sheriffs in declaring their counties would be “sanctuaries” for gun owners after the Democrat-controlled Virginia General Assembly proposed several anti-Second Amendment bills. Jenkins was also gaining significant national media attention for this as well as for being part of the team investigating the Hunter Biden laptop scandal.
But to the public that only saw the TV or local newspaper coverage, Jenkins had been found guilty of the kind of corruption that in most circumstances would be abhorrent to a conservative. He was accused of selling auxiliary deputy positions in his department for campaign contributions.