Sunday, November 1st 2015, 11:37 pm
A disturbing picture surfaced on social media of what appears to be inspired by the Ku Klux Klan.
The Garfield County sheriff said it was part of a "Halloween prank" in the town of Lahoma.
What was almost as shocking as the picture itself was who deputies said was under the white hood.
It was Cary Sharp wearing the white robe and hat last night.
He is married to the Lahoma mayor Theresa Sharp.
She was adamant she was nowhere near this party, away trick-or-treating with other family members.
But there were a lot of people upset about what her husband did.
Cary Sharp was caught on camera dressed like a member of the Ku Klux Klan at a Halloween party on a property in Lahoma.
It was a bonfire and the photo shows torches and a cross but Cary Sharp and his friends insisted no cross was burned despite flames being visible behind it in the photo.
News 9 spoke with the woman who reported it to police and like many others, she was outraged by this and embarrassed for the community.
Several other residents said they were ashamed that this kind of behavior happened among adults in their town.
When News 9 caught up with Cary Sharp, he said they thought it would be funny to cut holes in sheets and dress up like a member of the KKK.
"Sit around the bonfire and drink a couple of beers and thought well my buddy his last name is White and the subject got brung (sic) up. We just thought it'd be something to do and it's not something to do," Cary Sharp said. "I am embarrassed. I've shamed my family and friends and I apologize for that."
"I just don't condone it regardless of who it is whether it's my husband or Joe Smith around the corner. It's not anything that I think needs to be represented for our community at all," Lahoma mayor Theresa Sharp said.
The Garfield County sheriff said even though he and many others found it offensive, there were no laws broken. That night, the deputies asked the men to take off their costumes and put out the bonfire and they were compliant, Sheriff Jerry Niles said.
The report will, however, be handed over to the DA's office for review.
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