BRYAN — The Williams County sheriff is facing three misdemeanor charges on accusations he posted confidential child abuse reports online.

Authorities submitted against Sheriff Steven Towns one count improperly disclosing confidential information and two counts improperly releasing child abuse reports. Charges were filed Thursday in Bryan Municipal Court.

Officials said they believe Sheriff Towns on Oct. 19 posted hundreds of pages to the county sheriff's website and Facebook page. This includes at least two confidential reports of suspected child abuse, and the illegal identification of at least one child victim, they said.

In a statement, special prosecutor Mark Weaver said every public official is required to follow the law keeping such records confidential.

“While a sheriff has the right to conduct investigations or offer criticism of other government officials, there’s no right to publicly disclose these confidential reports — in fact it’s a crime to do so,” Mr. Weaver said.

Sheriff Towns told The Blade he cooperated with the investigation. The Facebook postings were related to a dispute with Williams County Job and Family Services, he said.

“It boils down to the fact that if other people had done their job properly, I wouldn't have been put in a position to where I felt there was no other alternative than to let the public know that there were significant hazards and injuries going on to children that weren't being handled properly,” he said.

The county commissioners requested information about a sheriff's office investigation, and Sheriff Towns submitted a report he thought was properly redacted, he said. The report was removed in less than a day with realization some redactions were not made, he said.

Sheriff Towns said they tried to protect the public and found no alternative after several years of the dispute. When asked by a reporter, Sheriff Towns said it was his office that completed the redactions.

Sheriff Towns said his efforts to resolve this through proper channels were blocked.

“I fully will defend myself, and it's just another case of a malicious prosecution,” Sheriff Towns said.

The Ohio Attorney General's Office Bureau of Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation.

First Published June 20, 2019, 6:50 p.m.