Milwaukee sheriff, Trump supporter Clarke resigns

MILWAUKEE—The tough-talking sheriff of Milwaukee County, David Clarke, resigned without explanation Thursday, capping a tumultuous year for the divisive, provocative lawman whose unabashed support for President Donald Trump and in-your-face personality earned him a national following among some conservatives.

Clarke submitted his resignation in a one-sentence letter to the county clerk that gave no reason for his departure more than a year before his term is up. In a brief statement a couple of hours later, Clarke also didn’t explain.

“I have chosen to retire to pursue other opportunities,” the statement said. “I will have news about my next steps in the very near future.”

The national spotlight shone on Clarke during the Republican National Convention last year, when the cowboy-hat-wearing sheriff took the stage as one of the few African-Americans to speak in support of Trump’s candidacy.

But while Clarke gained the admiration of conservative backers of Trump, he faced lawsuits back home and criticism over the operations at the county jail he oversaw, where four inmates died last year. One of the inmates died of dehydration because jail staff shut off water to his cell as punishment.

Clarke’s many liberal foes welcomed his departure.

“After years of abuse at his hands, the people of Milwaukee can sleep soundly tonight,” state Sen. Lena Taylor, a Democrat from Milwaukee and a frequent Clarke critic, said in a statement.