SPOKANE — A new lawsuit against Kootenai County Sheriff Robert “Bob” Norris accuses him of falsely suggesting during a public campaign event that a photographer was a pedophile.
Local Coeur d’Alene photographer Pennie Collinson filed the lawsuit Monday against Norris and the county over comments she said he made to her in July. Collinson attended the Kootenai County Republican Party Primary Election Forum in Cataldo at the time, where she was working as a photographer for Mike Bauer, a candidate for sheriff. During the candidate questioning portion of the forum, the lawsuit says, Norris pointed out Collinson and accused her of performing sex acts and photographing child pornography at a local library. More than 50 people attended the event.
The lawsuit, filed in Kootenai County, accuses Norris of slander, defamation, publication in a false light and inflicting emotional distress. Collinson originally filed an intent to sue Norris over the alleged incident in August, but because there was no reply to the claim, Collinson was able to sue.
Since the lawsuit was filed, Norris wrote in a news release on a sheriff’s office official letterhead he will be fighting the accusations and will “expose the extent of this hoax.”
“The claims are 100% false and are nothing more than local-level lawfare to create doubt and uncertainty regarding my character and reputation. In my 30-plus years of impeccable public service, I’ve never been accused of any criminal wrongdoing, corruption or sexual harassment until I decided to run for public office,” the sheriff’s office release said. “Beware of fake news and election lies directed at your Sheriff.”
While Norris says it didn’t happen, four witnesses provided written statements in which they corroborated Collinson’s accusations against Norris. Norris said “she likes taking pictures” of pornography and accused her of molesting children, a witness wrote in a statement. Another said he acknowledged Collinson and told the crowd she “likes” performing certain sex acts.
All witnesses in the lawsuit stated the crowd gasped and the room went silent.
Fred Scheffelmaier, the owner of the Country Barn Bed and Breakfast in Cataldo, hosted and emceed the forum. Scheffelmaier opened the meeting with a prayer, he told The Spokesman-Review in August.
“I was dumbfounded,” he said. “Why would you call someone something like that in a public meeting? … It wasn’t right. I just got through stating we were there to promote yourselves, no negative conduct.”
The incident was prompted by a discussion about removing books from public libraries — which Norris personally did last year, when he removed two books from the Post Falls Public Library he believed were inappropriate. Norris indicated at the time that he would rather pay for the books than give them back.
The conversation about library books during the forum seemed to go on and on, Scheffelmaier said, until he heard Norris “say derogatory remarks that were uncalled for and not right.”
When Collinson responded by asking Norris if he had called her a pedophile, he “just shrugged,” the lawsuit states.
“It was completely inappropriate and left me feeling very confused and shocked,” a witness wrote. Another wrote: “Other attendees could not believe Mr. Norris was so rude and disrespectful in saying what he did.”
A North Idaho Facebook group called “Like-minded peeps” was messaging in a private chat about the meeting, which were displayed in the lawsuit. Most recalled being in shock or in utter disbelief following the confrontation.
“I personally could not believe what I was hearing,” someone wrote. Another said their friend was there and phoned to talk about it.
“It was an outright, sexually explicit, verbal attack directed at this woman specifically,” someone wrote in the chat. “I couldn’t believe it! It was horrific. And from our current sheriff? Disgusting.”
“I do not think any of us could even make this stuff up if we wanted to,” someone else wrote. “It happened and it needs to be taken seriously and not just brushed off.”
Collinson was given the mic afterward, the lawsuit states, but Norris began yelling at her to ask a question rather than refute the claims.
A video shared with The Spokesman-Review by the Idaho Report, also published online, showed a woman who identified herself as a Coeur d’Alene photographer on stage telling Norris that she was the one who brought certain books in the library to his attention.
“What you said to me is disgusting,” the woman says in the video. “I do not advocate for child pornography.”
