Ashley Mathis, 28, of Imperial has filed a complaint with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office after deputies allegedly visited her home and covered one of her security cameras.
Mathis said she arrived at her home on Autumn Oaks Drive on Sunday (Feb. 10) to find one of her security cameras not working properly.
“The camera monitor sits on a desk in our bedroom and I saw that camera 1 is black,” she said.
Mathis said she rewound the footage and could see three Jefferson County Sheriff’s deputies in her yard. She said the deputies allegedly parked off-camera, moved two cinder blocks into her yard to reach the camera and covered it with mud.
“I was in total shock,” she said. “First thing that came to my mind is why would you cover the camera when you’re leaving and not when you first get there? It’s got me worried for my safety because why would you not want to be on camera unless you plan on doing harm or something illegal?”
She also said she found her back gate open, which is always closed and locked.
Jefferson County Sheriff Dave Marshak said the deputies went to the home after St. Louis County Police dispatched them there at 6:30 a.m. Sunday.
“They were verifying the address of a sex offender with violent tendencies,” he said.
Mathis said she knows who the deputies were looking for, but that he has not lived at the address for six years.
Marshak would not say whether any of the deputies had been disciplined, stating that he could not comment on an ongoing investigation and employee matters.
“In terms of the incident, we do not approve of it,” he said. “It does not conform to our standards of conduct and we will address it. And not only will it be addressed, but we want to make sure we limit the possibility of something like this happening again.”
On Wednesday night (Feb. 13), the Sheriff’s Office posted about the incident on Facebook.
“The Sheriff’s Office was recently made aware of a situation in which a deputy covered an outdoor surveillance camera at the home of a private residence,” the Facebook post said. “Upon learning of the incident, our Office of Professional Standards was notified and immediately proceeded to investigate the allegation.”
Mathis said Marshak called her and apologized, but she does not accept the apology.
“I think their public apology was just as professional as them covering up my cameras.”
Mathis said she went to the Sheriff’s Office North Zone Office on Monday (Feb. 11) to file the complaint.
She said she asked why the deputies were at her house and was told that, due to the deputies’ safety, the information would not be shared with her. She also said she had to ask several times to receive a copy of the complaint she filed.
Mathis said she called the Missouri Attorney General's office this morning (Feb. 14) to request an investigation.
“I don’t feel like Jefferson County investigating Jefferson County is going to be fair and just,” she said.
Mathis said she also plans to file a lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Office.
On Tuesday (Feb. 12), Mathis posted information about the alleged incident on Facebook, and a local TV station reached out to her.
She said the first time she heard from the Sheriff’s Office was on Wednesday.
Mathis said she put the cameras up in the summer of 2017 when she went on a vacation.
“It’s just peace of mind,” she said.
The camera is still covered and she plans to keep it covered for evidence. However, she said two more cameras have been installed since then.