I don’t think I understand who they’re trying to protect - saying that the DHS dude was some sort of culty weirdo doesn’t protect the DHS in the public eye. Rather than a bastion for murderers, its a bastion for cultists, and that distinction is awfully fine for the public - it’s still a place where Very Bad People hang out. That doesn’t deflect the judgement of the public, it just gives it a certain flavor.
The Sheriff’s shenanigans are suspicious, which makes me wonder if it’s obfuscation to protect the sherrifs, not DHS…but if’s successful, if so, because I can’t understand why they’d need that protection.
