Pinellas Deputy Fired Over Snapchat Post

LARGO, FL — A 23-year-old Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office rookie is out of a job after the agency says he made an “inappropriate” Snapchat post that was ultimately shared on other social media sites. The post went viral, sparking both anti-law enforcement sentiments and a Florida Department of Law Enforcement inquiry, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputy Austen Callus’ termination was announced Thursday, just two days after an investigation into the post was launched. According to the sheriff’s office, the post related to a domestic disturbance call Callus responded to in Dunedin on June 25 involving a man and woman. The woman, dispatchers were informed, had armed herself with a knife and retreated to the garage of a home on Winchester Drive. When Callus and another deputy got her to come out of the garage, they discovered she was not armed, an incident report said.

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While that call resulted in no arrests and no knife found, the sheriff’s office said Callus posted a selfie on Snapchat following the incident. The post read: “Nothing like almost shooting someone to set your head right lol. God I gate (should be hate) people with knives”

Making matters worse, the sheriff’s office said Callus’ post was shared by someone else on Facebook and ended up going viral.

“The post created such a concern due to the anti-law enforcement sentiment, it caused the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to promptly request assistance in identifying the Snapchat photo,” Assistant Chief Deputy George S. Steffen wrote in a memo to Sheriff Bob Gaultieri recommending Callus’s termination. Steffen also called Callus’ actions “troubling and discrediting.”

Callus was hired by the sheriff’s office in November 2016. He completed the field training program on May 27 and was assigned to the agency’s north district. Callus was placed on administrative leave on Wednesday, June 28, and was fired Thursday, the sheriff's office said.

“Callus’ guns and credentials were collected from him,” an email from the sheriff’s office noted.

No further information is available at this time.

Photo courtesy of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office