McCurtain County, Oklahoma is home to about 30,000 people represented by county commissioners and other elected officials. Earlier this week, local print-only newspaper The McCurtain Gazette-News revealed that County Commissioner Mark Jennings, along with three other leaders, were caught on tape in a March 6 meeting making egregious comments about Black people and reporters.

Jennings resigned from his position as county commissioner yesterday (April 19). Gov. Kevin Stitt’s office confirmed that Jennings submitted a handwritten resignation letter declaring that he was leaving his post immediately and plans to release a formal statement “in the near future regarding the recent events in our county,” according to the AP.

Stitt previously said that he was seeking the resignations of McCurtain County Sheriff Kevin Clardy, sheriff’s Capt. Alicia Manning, Commissioner Mark Jennings, and Jail Administrator Larry Hendrix. While Jennings is gone, the other three have yet to share any plans to leave.

“I am both appalled and disheartened to hear of the horrid comments made by officials in McCurtain County,” Stitt said in a statement. “There is simply no place for such hateful rhetoric in the state of Oklahoma, especially by those that serve to represent the community through their respective office.”

In the March 6 county commission meeting, Clardy, Manning, and Jennings began discussing two McCurtain News-Gazette reporters who have covered the sheriff’s office in the past. Jennings told Clardy and Manning, “I know where two deep holes are dug if you ever need them.” Sheriff Clardy quipped, “I’ve got an excavator.” Jennings also noted that he knows “two or three hit men” in Louisiana and that “they’re very quiet guys.”

The ex-county commissioner went on to reminisce on “back in the day” when a former sheriff “would take a damn Black guy and whoop their a** and throw him in the cell.” Sheriff Clardy lamented, “It’s not like that no more.” Jennings responded with what he wishes law enforcement officials were allowed to do. “Take them down to Mud Creek and hang them up with a damn rope,” he said. “But you can’t do that anymore. They got more rights than we got.” Listen to the full three-hour conversation below.

The McCurtain County Sheriff’s Office addressed the controversy in a Facebook post on Tuesday (April 17). Rather than speak to the comments made by those in the meeting, it claimed the recording was illegally obtained and was pursuing legal action for the leaked audio.