Clay Higgins, a captain in St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office known for his kick-ass Youtube videos, resigned this week after deciding to spend more quality time with his cameras.

“They’re growing up so fast,” he said, “and it hurts to put on that badge every morning, walk out the door, and not know if you’re going to see them again. Especially working nights, weekends, and holidays, a man misses out on the most important aspects of their lives. The way their little lenses stare back at me, how their tiny buttons feel beneath my fingers, it’s so magical.” Higgins then took a breath, composed himself, and said, “Not to mention the constant hazards and dangers of the job…It’s taxing on a man’s soul, and at the end of the day, I just want to make it back home to my Panasonic GH4 and Sony Alpha a7s.”

The decision to step down was sparked after Sheriff Bobby Guidroz asked Captain Higgins to tone down his “inflammatory” and “unprofessional” language and maybe spend a little less time shouting personal insults into his cameras, to which Higgins replied:

I’d rather die than sacrifice my principles. How am I supposed to do my job with a clean conscience if I can’t go on the internet and challenge a 125 lb suspect to one-on-one combat? How am I supposed to protect my community if I can’t tell a wanted man that his life is worthless and the fires of hell await him? I took an oath to the constitution, and I will not violate that sacred pact by treating these suspects like they are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Many within law enforcement believe that Captain Higgins is a good man; however, his actions could make it more difficult for his fellow officers to do their jobs as well as make it more difficult for prosecutors to convict and uphold convictions in cases where he was involved. It was perfectly reasonable for Sheriff Guidroz (concerned with upholding citizens’ 5th and 6th amendment rights) to request that Higgins simply use less personal insults in his videos. Captain Higgins took this request as something incompatible with his principles and decided to resign. In his resignation speech, he defiantly stated that he would not kneel to activists who only want publicity and profits.

If you want to show these profit-driven, publicity-hound activists that they can’t bully a good man, you can support Captain Higgins by going to his website and purchasing some gear or contact him about a speaking engagement.