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BREAKING: 72 Philadelphia police officers have been placed on administrative duty as an investigation into alleged racist and violent social media posts continues. https://t.co/LH7IJ704XE
— CBS Philly (@CBSPhilly) June 19, 2019
This is in reaction to this investigation
Advocates researching police bias published a database Saturday of what they said were racist, intolerant, or otherwise offensive Facebook posts or comments made by hundreds of current and former Philadelphia police officers.
The database, compiled by a group called the Plain View Project, highlights posts from officers in eight police departments across the country. The list cited 330 active Philadelphia police officers — including an inspector, six captains, and nine lieutenants — who made posts or comments that researchers considered dehumanizing, supportive of violence, and that “could erode civilian trust and confidence in police.”
One man identified on the database as a Philadelphia police sergeant shared a photo of a skeleton wrapped in a U.S. flag, carrying a gun, and the words Death To Islam on top.
Beneath another post about what are known as “knockout games,” in which young people try to knock out a random stranger with one punch, a man identified as a Philadelphia officer commented: “Hope one of these kids get shot in the face.”
The reaction to the database was swift. Mayor Jim Kenney said in a statement that the posts were “deeply disturbing” and “violate a number of department policies.” Some defense attorneys said the database could provide an avenue for criminal defendants to challenge cases by questioning an officer’s credibility.
And District Attorney Larry Krasner — who has charged police for wrongdoing in ways his predecessors had not and created his own list of officers with credibility problems — said: “When police officers choose to make statements relevant to their work and then choose to publicize them to the world, they are also choosing any consequences that those statements, the law, and justice require.”
The database, compiled by a group called the Plain View Project, highlights posts from officers in eight police departments across the country. The list cited 330 active Philadelphia police officers — including an inspector, six captains, and nine lieutenants — who made posts or comments that researchers considered dehumanizing, supportive of violence, and that “could erode civilian trust and confidence in police.”
One man identified on the database as a Philadelphia police sergeant shared a photo of a skeleton wrapped in a U.S. flag, carrying a gun, and the words Death To Islam on top.
Beneath another post about what are known as “knockout games,” in which young people try to knock out a random stranger with one punch, a man identified as a Philadelphia officer commented: “Hope one of these kids get shot in the face.”
The reaction to the database was swift. Mayor Jim Kenney said in a statement that the posts were “deeply disturbing” and “violate a number of department policies.” Some defense attorneys said the database could provide an avenue for criminal defendants to challenge cases by questioning an officer’s credibility.
And District Attorney Larry Krasner — who has charged police for wrongdoing in ways his predecessors had not and created his own list of officers with credibility problems — said: “When police officers choose to make statements relevant to their work and then choose to publicize them to the world, they are also choosing any consequences that those statements, the law, and justice require.”
Saint Louis added 60 officers to the list
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner added 22 more names Tuesday to a list of officers banned from bringing cases to her office, this time after a national research project accused them of making racist and anti-Muslim social media posts.
The total number is now almost 60, roughly 5% of the department’s force of about 1,100 commissioned officers.
Gardner sent a letter to Public Safety Director Jimmie Edwards and St. Louis Police Chief John Hayden on Tuesday informing them of the changes, saying that seven of the 22 officers are “permanently banned,” meaning her office won’t issue charges based on their investigations, won’t apply for search warrants they seek and won’t consider cases in which they are essential witnesses.
The total number is now almost 60, roughly 5% of the department’s force of about 1,100 commissioned officers.
Gardner sent a letter to Public Safety Director Jimmie Edwards and St. Louis Police Chief John Hayden on Tuesday informing them of the changes, saying that seven of the 22 officers are “permanently banned,” meaning her office won’t issue charges based on their investigations, won’t apply for search warrants they seek and won’t consider cases in which they are essential witnesses.
Dallas Police & NYPD are investigating their officers also.
The Plainview Project investigated only 8 departments and found over 3500 cops with troubling Social Media posts. Posts that show inherent bias.
You can find it here
https://www.plainviewproject.org/dat...0282668548-942
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