A lesbian sheriff from Northeastern Pennsylvania was arrested last week after allegedly threatening to kill her former partner.
Police arrested Mary Jean Farrell, 51, June 29 for harassment and making terroristic threats, charges that allegedly stemmed from an ongoing custody battle.
Farrell has been on disability leave from her position as a deputy sheriff in Luzerne County since October 2010.
Farrell’s former girlfriend, Jenipher Johnson, contacted police June 29 to report that Farrell made telephone death threats that morning.
Johnson told police that the night before, Farrell slowly drove past her house several times around midnight, hours after a near-physical altercation between Farrell and Johnson’s current partner.
Johnson and Farrell have been involved in a five-year custody battle for their two children, ages 14 and 12. Johnson is the biological mother.
Johnson said she and her partner were met by Farrell at the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Airport last Thursday afternoon, upon their return from a doctor’s appointment in Wyoming for Johnson’s son, who suffers from cystic fibrosis. Johnson told police that Farrell attempted to assault her partner at the airport.
Following the arrest, both women have filed restraining orders against one another.
Farrell was released after posting $1,000 bail.
Farrell is out on disability under the state’s Heart and Lung Act, which allows law-enforcement officers unlimited amount of paid time to recuperate from an injury suffered while on the job.
Luzerne County Sheriff Jack Robshaw has said he will launch an investigation into the arrest to determine if disciplinary action is warranted.