The Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge No. 9 and its president, Jeff Simpson, have filed a civil lawsuit seeking to halt an investigation by the city of Columbus into their activities that resulted from comments Simpson made on his X account in July 2023.
The lawsuit, filed in Franklin County Common Pleas Court, seeks a temporary restraining order and a permanent injunction against the city’s investigation into Simpson and any union activity. The lawsuit contends that Simpson was acting in his capacity as union president when he made his comments on his X account, and that any issues can be decided by an independent arbitrator.
The controversy arose when Simpson commented about country music star Jason Aldean’s song, “Try That In A Small Town” on his personal X account. The song and music video has drawn support from people in small towns and people generally on the right politically. It has also drawn backlash from Black civil rights leaders and people generally on the left politically for using lyrics and images deemed reminiscent of racism and lynching.