An officer from the Detroit Police Department was fired on Monday for an offensive social media post.
Rookie cop Sean Bostwick, 27, reportedly posted a SnapChat photo of himself in uniform on Sep 22 with the caption, “Another night to Rangel [sic] up these zoo animals.” The officer later took the post down, but the image had already gone viral, according to Detroit News.
During a news conference at the Detroit Public Safety Headquarters on Sept. 24, Police Chief James Craig said he received several phone calls from city officials and other officers following Bostwick’s social media post.
“This is not reflective of this department,” said Craig. “We expect a high level of professionalism when we’re serving the public.”
Detroit residents were outraged over Bostwick’s post and one person tweeted, “He needs to be fired. Your top cop is black, you patrol a predominantly black neighborhood, in a city that is almost 85% black. Can’t have this on our force.”
The 27-year-old cop was suspended a day prior to being fired from the Detroit Police Department.
“He was terminated,” the police chief stated. “This is his last day on our payroll. Tomorrow, he will no longer be a Detroit police officer. He is clear on that.”
Bostwick had been on the force for 18 months but been out of the police academy for only two months. The rookie spent majority of time in the police academy because of low test scores, said Craig.
However, the police chief stated that he met Bostwick and a union representative at 10:30 a.m. on Monday and the officer apologized for his callous social post.
“He took responsibility for it,” said Craig. “He admitted that he did this. He said he didn’t mean it the way it came off.”
However, the police chief said insensitive comments will not be tolerated nor allowed. “If you feel that way, you’re not welcome here and we’re not going to have any tolerance for this kind of behavior,” he said.
Bostwick was assigned to the department’s 12th Precinct and was still on his 90-day-probation period, which allowed Craig to “take quick” and “decisive action.”
“I don’t think any city would want to take a chance or risk, but that’s between him and a potential employer,” said the Detroit police chief.
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