Cedar County Sheriff's Deputies & Tipton Police Officer Speak Out Against County Attorney Jeff Renander for Being Soft on Sex Crimes

It's been a few years since I've written about Cedar County Attorney Jeff Renander or his checkered past as an anti-gay culture warrior. You might remember that he was the editor-in-chief of the Campus Review here at the University of Iowa back in the early 90s. He and his friends used to troll local Pride events and take pictures of most everyone who attended. The would then send their Pride pictures to their employers or to their families in order to create trouble for them. Which was a nasty thing to do to folks back in the early 1990s, even in Iowa City.

But the Campus Review really made its mark in July 1991 when they decided to mock the AIDS Quilt by creating something called the "Gerbil Quilt."


I found an archive article about Campus Review, the Gerbil Quilt and Renander's horrible justification for creating it:

Jeff Renander, editor of the Campus Review, said he was surprised by the controversy surrounding the display. "I don't understand why people get so bent out of shape by a medical fact. It is common knowledge that gerbiling occurs among some (homosexual) men," Renander said. "I guess the bottom line for me is that all we did was repeat a fact. Gerbils die, too." Renander said a lot of people liked the display case. "Maybe if nothing else, some gerbils will be saved by all this publicity."

For the records, gerbiling is not a fact. It's an urban legend.

That said, I'm actually not here to write about the Gerbil Quilt tonight -- although I've been meaning to post those archive images for a while. I'm actually here to write about a modern day controversy involving Cedar County Attorney Jeff Renander.

It seems that the Cedar County Sheriff's Office has been increasingly uncomfortable with Renander's allegedly lenient treatment of defendants within the county -- particularly those involved in sex crimes. Last last month, all 13 officers with the Cedar County Sheriff's Office signed a vote of no confidence against the County Attorney.

According to their February 20, 2020 letter, Renander was "egregiously inappropriate" towards the victim in a sexual assault case, reportedly blaming her for drinking too much alcohol before being raped and suggesting that she should learn from the experience. He reportedly minimized the trauma of her sexual assault by telling her "at least you weren't awake for it." He then plea bargained the felony charge to a serious misdemeanor.

The sheriff's deputies claim that this was the latest in a series of poorly handled cases involving sexual abuse victims, including child sexual abuse victims. All 13 deputies signed the no-confidence letter and then presented that information to the Cedar County Board of Supervisors.

It isn't just the Cedar County Sheriff's Department who is concerned about the County Attorney's professional conduct. The Tipton Police Department has reportedly reported Jeff Renander to the Office of Professional Regulation under the Iowa Judicial Branch. This complaint will now go to the Iowa Supreme Court's Attorney Disciplinary Board for investigation. Depending on the results of this investigation, Renander could face professional reprimand or possibly even lose his license.