San francisco police racist texts, San francisco police racist texts, San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr announced Friday that the officers have been suspended, adding that he has recommended that they be fired, according to the Associated Press.
The text messages, sent by the officers in 2011 and 2012, "are of such despicable thinking that those responsible clearly fall below the minimum standards required to be a police officer," he said in a statement, The New York Times reports. Some of the messages spoke of lynching African-Americans, while others included slurs against Mexicans, Filipinos and homosexuals, according to the Times.
The texts were discovered during a FBI investigation into corruption involving Ian Furminger, a former San Francisco police sergeant, Business Insider reports.
As many as 14 officers sent or received the hateful messages, according to the Times They have been disciplined to varying degrees, Suhr revealed during Friday's press conference.
Lawyers for the officers said the messages were simply a way of blowing off steam and did not represent their clients' character.
But Jeff Adachi, San Francisco's public defender, disputed those claims. "The characterization of these hateful statements as innocent banter is dead wrong," he said. "This casual dehumanization leads to real-life suffering and injustice. It foments a toxic environment in which citizens fear and distrust the police, brutality reigns, and good officers are less effective."
The text messages, sent by the officers in 2011 and 2012, "are of such despicable thinking that those responsible clearly fall below the minimum standards required to be a police officer," he said in a statement, The New York Times reports. Some of the messages spoke of lynching African-Americans, while others included slurs against Mexicans, Filipinos and homosexuals, according to the Times.
The texts were discovered during a FBI investigation into corruption involving Ian Furminger, a former San Francisco police sergeant, Business Insider reports.
As many as 14 officers sent or received the hateful messages, according to the Times They have been disciplined to varying degrees, Suhr revealed during Friday's press conference.
Lawyers for the officers said the messages were simply a way of blowing off steam and did not represent their clients' character.
But Jeff Adachi, San Francisco's public defender, disputed those claims. "The characterization of these hateful statements as innocent banter is dead wrong," he said. "This casual dehumanization leads to real-life suffering and injustice. It foments a toxic environment in which citizens fear and distrust the police, brutality reigns, and good officers are less effective."
