Woodstock smoke shop owner backtracks on anti-police social media post

A local business owner said he’s sorry for posting a crude statement on Facebook about the funeral procession of fallen McHenry County Sheriff’s Deputy Jacob Keltner.

Quincy Hagerty, owner of Many Clouds Smoke Shop at 1672 S. Eastwood Drive in Woodstock, offended many local residents after he posted, “PIG PARADE ON 47, avoid at ALL cost!!” on his personal Facebook page. The message posted Wednesday, the same day as the funeral procession for Keltner, included pig and feces emojis.

In a comment on the post, Hagerty wrote: “I’ll bet our tax dollars are paying for all these pigs to take the day off.”

Many Facebook users decried Hagerty’s post, took screenshots of it and encouraged people to boycott his business.

After fierce backlash, Hagerty deleted the post and posted an apology.

“I want to apologize to anybody I may have offended or insulted by my untimely comments today in reference to the traffic in Woodstock due to the slain Mchenry Co officer. i know a lot of people have terrible things to say about me, and rightfully so.... (I deserve it) I meant no disrespect to anyone. I’m probably walking into fire here, but I do regret my post and being so insensitive, at such a difficult time for so many,” the apology read in part.

Hagerty’s personal and business Facebook pages have been taken down. His store was closed Friday.

Hagerty told the Northwest Herald that he visited the Woodstock Police Department and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office to apologize.

“I absolutely regret my post, and I know it was ignorant and childish to say,” Hagerty said. “I am certainly not a cop hater. ... Pig is a term that started in the ’60s, and I guess until now I never really realized how derogatory it really was, especially at a time like now.”

Hagerty said he’s received hundreds of angry messages on Facebook from people across the nation.

“I wish I could go back and change it,” he said. “I’m truly sorry, and I hope people can understand that I made a mistake and try to forgive my dumb ... move.”

Hagerty, 39, said he’s never done anything criminal in his life. According to McHenry County online court records, he has more than a dozen citations for traffic violations since the late ’90s. He said that in 2000 he got in trouble for possession of drug paraphernalia.

“I’m not taking out my anger on the cops,” he said.

Keltner, 35, of Crystal Lake, was shot and killed March 7 while serving a warrant on a known fugitive in Rockford. He was a McHenry County Sheriff’s deputy and a member of the U.S. Marshals Service Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force.

Thousands of law enforcement officials, first responders and family members filled Woodstock North High School on Wednesday morning for Keltner’s funeral. After the funeral, a procession of law enforcement and emergency vehicles made its way across McHenry County.

Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Terry Roderick, president of the Concerns of Police Survivors Illinois Chapter, said Hagerty’s post was highly offensive. The Concerns of Police Survivors Illinois Chapter helped organize Keltner’s funeral.

“It’s sad that not everybody likes the police, welcomes the police, but you know if that gentleman’s store got robbed or he needed assistance, he would definitely be calling the police,” Roderick said. “There’s hate for law enforcement; there’s hate for all professions. I think you’re seeing it now because social media is so vast and [there is] so much interaction on social media.”

Roderick said Hagerty’s post won’t tarnish the funeral and procession.

“The family saw all the support that was out there by the community, and they were just honored that people gave up their day, stood out in the cold for the long amount of time that they did,” Roderick said.

At a diner next to Hagerty’s store, Vietnam veteran Dale Carpenter of Marengo said he was upset by the post.

“These guys are serving us. If you don’t respect them for what they do, there’s something wrong,” Carpenter said. “There’s certain things where you respect the situation and do the right thing.”

Area resident Garrett Basista said he also was deeply offended by the post and made others aware of it on social media.

“What [Hagerty] said was absolutely disgusting, and he should be ashamed of himself! Deputy Keltner was a hero who gave his life for protecting the general public!” Basista said in a statement. “For a business owner to put those strong hateful words on social media is upsetting!”

However, customer Frank Schoen of Woodstock said he’ll continue patronizing Many Clouds.

“I don’t think it should affect anyone at shopping anywhere because everyone has their own opinions, but it’s all based on what they’ve experienced in their life, if they had a bad experience with a cop,” Schoen said Friday outside the shop. “There’s a lot of bad stuff going on with cops, with killing innocent people. ... Some cops are good and they actually do their job, but we’re just exposed to all this negativity and all the bad stuff in the world now that a lot of people think cops are our enemies – and with some cases they are – but not in all cases, but that’s how it is with everything.”