The Stuart mayor is facing sharp criticism after she directed a verbal insult toward a Stuart police officer.
The Palm Beach County Police Benevolent Association reports Stuart Mayor Eula Clarke said "I didn't know we were serving pig," in reference to a uniformed police officer she saw at a local grocery store. The police officer says he heard her say it.
Initially, Mayor Clarke wasn't interested in telling me her side of the story.
I asked, "So what happened on January the 11 involving a Stuart police officer?"
Clarke: "Andrew, I told you I want to make a short statement to the public."
So I tried again.
"Did you make reference to a pig in reference to a Stuart police officer?" I asked.
"Again, I'm telling you that I support law enforcement," she replied.
From John Kazanjian, the president of the local police benevolent association, the story went like this: A Stuart police officer was inside Taylor's grocery store when Mayor Clarke walked in on January 11.
"She looks at the officer and says, 'What are we serving, pig today?' " Kazanjian said. "The poor guy walked out, you know, hurt. That's coming from the mayor of the city?"
During our interview with Kazanjian he received a letter from Mayor Clarke outlining her apology, asking for forgiveness.
"It's a first step," he says. "That's just on paper. Anyone can write that. She needs to get with the men and women (of the department)."
The mayor told me she apologized to the officer already.
"I have met with him and I have expressed to him how sorry it is that this unfortunate event happened," Clarke said.
And she would be willing to do the same to the entire police force- while finally acknowledging the January 11 incident.
"It happened. That was something that happened. It's done with. I want to move on. I want the officers to work for our community. I want them to believe in what I do as mayor. To believe in what they do for their jobs. I just want to make sure that they know I have their backs," she said.
The association says it hopes the department-wide apology happens sometime early next week.
