By James Simons-
An American cop from Georgia is facing dismissal after being caught on a dash cam footage telling a woman in a traffic stop, “We only kill black people.”
Lt.Gregg Abbott from Cobb County, Georgia, was so foolish that he recorded himself on his dashcam uttering the shameful comments as he pulled the car over. The 27 year old officer who looks in his forties, was aware of the dashcam recorder, but obviously failed to imagine the possibility of being exposed by the dashcam. The footage of the dashcam reveals the moment a female passenger tells the officer that she is afraid to move her hands because she has seen ‘way too many videos of cops’. Abbott interjects and ”But you are not black, remember, we only shoot. We only black people right, all the videos you’ve seen, have you seen the black people get killed? The revelation
A lawyer for Cobb County Police Lt. Greg Abbott said the comments from the traffic stop “must be observed in their entirety to understand their context.” Lawyer, Lance J. Lorosu tried to mitigate the cops offence by stating that Gregg was attempting to de-escalate a situation involving an uncooperative passenger, lawyer Lance J. LoRusso said in a statement.
Police Chief, Mike Register, rebutted that explanation by insisting that no matter the context, the statements were “inexcusable and inappropriate” and did not reflect the culture he’s trying to build. The July 2016 video was first reported on Wednesday by CNN affiliate WSB-TV , but came to the attention of the U.S force, today, Friday in response to an open records request. Register, a recently appointed chief of the suburban Atlanta force since June said an internal review has recommended terminating Abbott’s employment.
AD: Capeesh Restaurant
“I’ve known Lt. Abbott for a number of years, and I’ve always perceived him to be an honorable man. He made a mistake. I don’t know what’s in his heart, but I certainly know what came out of his mouth. And, it’s inexcusable and we have to take appropriate action.” Abbott has now been put on desk duties whilst he is investigated for the ”inappropriate racial comments”. The response of police chief , Mike Register, was most appropriate, and shows him to be true leader and honourable police chief. His comments contrasted with the lousy one given by lawyer, Lorosu, shows the latter to be more of a ‘puppet’ in comparison to the newly appointed police chief.
UPROAR
The video has caused an uproar particularly in black communities in t the U.S where relations with the police are historically very poor after its , Abbott’s lawyer’s further comments that the video showed that “his comments were clearly aimed at attempting to gain compliance by using the passenger’s own statements and reasoning to avoid making an arrest,” just goes a long way to discredit the law profession in many respects, by showing how low lawyers would stoop just to represent their client. A noble lawyer would be expected to first categorically condemn the actions of their client before attempting to explain his motive for making stupid and far reaching comments like those. Reckless killings of black people in the U.S have been documented over the years, but it is worth noting that white people have also been killed by cops for apparently frivolous reasons. White victims of deadly police brutality are disproportionately lower than those of black people in the U.S, making such statements from a police officer shocking and embarrassing for the American police force as a whole.
Register has accepted the suggestion of the ongoing internal review that Abbott was attempting to invoke “a sarcastic standpoint” to handle the situation. However he insisted that such comments threaten to undermine the public’s trust in law enforcement, he said.
“In my opinion, I feel that no matter what context you try to take those comments in, the statements were inexcusable and inappropriate and they’re not indicative of the values that I’m trying to instill within the Cobb County Police Department and I believe that the county holds,” he said.
“My staff’s worked hard. Men and women who wear the Cobb County uniform have worked hard. And, I think that we have done some great things here in the last few months. And, it’s sad to think that several seconds of video has the potential of tearing that apart.
AD: Oysterian Sea Food Restaurant And Bar
The recommendation for Abbott’s dismissal should be carried out to signal the right message that his behaviour was totally appalling and unacceptable. The eye of media.com has contacted cobb county for a comment, and has been promised a response in due course.
AD: Heritage And Restaurant Lounge Bar