Racist texts between over a dozen Antioch police officers have rocked the city to its core. The Northern California city’s officers are under investigation as an investigative report about the racist text messages probe was released on April 13.
The FBI and local authorities joined forces to investigate the racial epithets and homophobic slurs between 2020 and 2021. The officers accused of partaking in the racist acts allegedly casually discussed the use of “less lethal” weapons on people, including the city’s mayor, who is Black. Additionally, they are accused of sharing racist images.
Racist Texts Lead to Visit Judge
Contra Costa Superior Court Judge Clare Maier released the report compiled by the County District Attorney’s Office. The investigative report also included the partially redacted text messages allegedly sent by the officers.
Additionally, new information has come to light showing that racial misconduct overlapped a charged felony case. This overlap impact said case.
A statement released by DA Diana Becton stated that the racial hostility expressed by the officers in the text messages triggered “additional statutory concerns under the Racial Justice Act.”
Presenting Facts
On April 4, the defense and DA’s office appeared before Judge Maier to present the overlapping misconduct. Three days later, Judge Maier ruled to release “the two investigative reports” to the defense team “in the charged felony case.”
To shield cell phone numbers, the judge partially redacted the reports. Furthermore, Judge Maier “urged caution in the distribution of the language and images contained in the texts as they can spark more hatred toward Blacks and Latinos.”
The officers apparently mentioned two of the four men charged with murder in some of their text messages. The four men face felony charges if found guilty.
Questionable Credibility
The city of Antioch has roughly 114,000 residents and is located about 45 miles northeast of San Francisco. The majority of these residents are minorities.
Now the credibility of the officers involved in the text messing is being questioned. Evan Kuluk, the deputy public defender for Contra Costa County, stated, “Right now there are people sitting in jail based on the word of these officers who’ve been involved in using this horribly offensive language.” Adding the situation is “intolerable.”
In a text message dated April 29, 2020, Officer Mortea Amiri texted a colleague from a department nearby saying that his agency does not videotape confessions. Amiri stated because of this he sometimes reports “People gave me a full confession when they didn’t.” Adding this made filing “easier.”
Condemning Messages
Sergeant Josh Evans, another officer accused of racist texts, allegedly used a derogatory term used for a Black person adding that he would bury said person in his “fields.”
Additionally, Officer Eric Rombough is suspected of sending Evans a picture of one of the murder suspects in the hospital. Allegedly, Evans responded, “You plugged him in the neck? Lol,” according to a report provided by Mathew Martinez, a lawyer for suspect Trent Allen.
In a text, Evans supposedly insinuated the injuries Allen acquired were “his fault.” Furthermore, Rombough allegedly responded, “So was the 6 muzzle thumps and me trying to kick his head over the fence.”
The president of the Antioch Police Association, Sgt. Rick Hoffman, is accused of using homophobic slurs about a suspect. Furthermore, he allegedly used a vulgar phrase to convey what he did to the suspect.
Racial Texts Add to Citizens’ Distrust
These racial text messages add to the growing tensions among citizens across the United States. Police brutality, racist actions, and systemic disparities have been on the rise for many years.
Police violence from the beating of Rodney King to the killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd have cited civil unrest and riots across the nation. As of March 27, there have been 238 civilians shot by police officers. Of those 30 individuals were Black, according to Statista.
In 2022, officers fatally shot 1,096 individuals. The year prior, 1,048 people were fatally shot. Additionally, Statista’s data states “the rate of fatal police shootings among Black Americans was much higher than that for any other ethnicity.”
These statistics are just some examples of why many have a great distrust and even fear police officers. It is no surprise many are calling for an abolishment of the police force completely. Many more are crying for greater police reform and a better vetting system for those who want to “serve and protect.”
By Sheena Robertson
Sources:
Statista: Number of people shot to death by the police in the United States from 2017 to 2023, by race
The Harvard Gazette: Solving racial disparities in policing
Contra Costa District Attorney: Statement By DA Diana Becton on Disclosure of Racist Texts in Felony Case
NBC News: Racist text messaging investigation rocks Northern California police department
San Francisco Gate: ‘It’s vile’: Trove of racist texts from police roils Antioch
Top and Featured Image by Edward Lich Courtesy of Pixabay – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Alejandro Mallea‘s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
