Friday, March 6, 2015

2 Ferguson police officers quit; court clerk fired after Justice report - St. Louis American


(CNN) -- Three employees of the City of Ferguson, Missouri, have resigned or been fired after the U.S. Department of Justice investigation of racial prejudice in the city's police and judicial system, the city spokesman said Friday.


Police officers Rick Henke and William Mudd resigned Thursday over racist emails discovered during the investigation, city spokesman Jeff Small said on Friday, citing the city attorney.


The city's top court clerk, Mary Ann Twitty, was fired earlier this week in connection with the racist emails, Small said.


Earlier this week, the DOJ released its investigation report prompted by the slaying last summer of black teenager Michael Brown by a white police officer. The DOJ declined to bring charges against officer Darren Wilson, who has since left the force.


In a separate report, the Justice Department described what it said was a "pattern and practice" of discrimination against African-Americans by the Ferguson police and municipal courts. That discrimination included racist emails.


President Obama said Friday that although he doesn't think the abuses of power in Ferguson are typical of America, there are individuals and possibly whole departments in American law enforcement that may struggle to prevent prejudice in their ranks.


"I don't think that is typical of what happens across the country, but it's not an isolated incident," Obama said in an early morning interview on SiriusXM's "Urban View" channel.


"I think there are circumstances in which trust between communities and law enforcement has broken down, and individuals or entire departments may not have the training or the accountability to make sure they are protecting, serving all people, and not just some."


Ferguson Mayor James Knowles has outlined a number of reforms the city implemented to address some of the Justice Department's concerns, and said the city "must do better" to address racism.


"We must all work to address issues of racial disparity in all aspects of our society," he said Wednesday.


The-CNN-Wire


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