A San Jose, California police officer, who was exposed for sending a slew of racist text messages, reportedly resigned from the department.
Officer Mark McNamara allegedly sent the messages to another employee at the department, who is currently on administrative leave amid an internal investigation, according to a Nov. 3 press release. The exchange came after the March 27, 2022, shooting of community college football player K’aun Green, who is still recovering from his injuries.
Green was inside La Victoria Taqueria with his friends when a random man walked into the restaurant and threatened the group. The man left the establishment, returned with two other people, and one pulled out a gun, sparking a physical altercation. Green’s attorney argued that he was acting in self-defense.
“He wrestled the gun away from the guy,” attorney Adante Pointer told local news. “So what you see here is a young man who sprang into action to defend himself and others and was backing away, creating space between he and the gunman who was trying to take the gun back from him, trying to de-escalate the situation.”
As he was exiting the restaurant with the gun, he was shot multiple times by police. They believed he was linked to a homicide that happened nearby. He was arrested and transported to a local hospital. When police realized he was not the suspect, they arrested and charged another man. Green filed a lawsuit against the department and the city last year.
McNamara was identified as the officer who shot the student-athlete. In the text messages revealed by the department last week, he spoke about Green a day after the shooting.
“N***a wanted to carry a gun in the Wild West. Not on my watch, haha,” he allegedly wrote.
In another message, he said: “I hate black people.”
Pointer called the dialogue “disgusting and “vile,” according to KGO-TV. They are calling for criminal charges to be filed against him and want to stop him from being rehired. At one point, McNamara seemingly texted that Green’s attorneys “should all be bowing to me and bringing me gifts, otherwise he would have lived a life of poverty and crime.”
Chief Anthony Mata condemned the messages, adding that the department has no room for racial bias. They found the messages while conducting an unrelated investigation.
“If any employee’s racial bias rears its ugly head, rest assured that I will take immediate action to ensure they are not part of this organization,” Mata said. “I am extremely proud of the 99.9% of officers whose achievements and dedication to this community are unmatched and I will not let the actions of a few officers cloud the extraordinary work being done in our city every day.”
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