St. Paul Cop Put on Leave over Post on Protesters

A St. Paul police officer has been put on leave while the department investigates allegations that he made a post on Facebook urging drivers to run over Black Lives Matter protesters. 

The Pioneer Press reports that the Facebook message told people how to avoid being charged with a crime if they struck someone during the Martin Luther King Day march and rally Monday on a bridge linking St. Paul and Minneapolis. 

Mayor Chris Coleman issued a statement saying he was “outraged and disgusted” and had directed officials to investigate.

In a Facebook post on the St. Paul Police Department’s page, the department says they are actively investigating. 

They called the statement “offensive, disappointing and concerning” and said it does not reflect- in any way- or align with- the views, values and practices of the St. Paul Police Department. 

The department says that if they determine the comment was written by a member of the St. Paul Police Department, that “swift, strong and decisive disciplinary action will be taken.”