Fort Worth police chief, others sign letter addressing George Floyd’s death, racism

Fort Worth Police Chief Ed Kraus and nearly 50 other police chiefs across the country signed a letter Monday that addressed George Floyd’s death as “unnecessary, avoidable and criminal.”

Arlington interim Police Chief Jaime Ayala and Dallas Police Chief U. Reneè Hall also signed the letter, which was released by the Major Cities Chiefs Association.

Floyd, an unarmed black man, died May 25 in Minneapolis died after a white police officer pressed a knee on his neck while he was handcuffed. Soon after, protests against police brutality sprung across the country.

In Fort Worth, what began as peaceful gatherings developed into a stand-off late Sunday on the West 7th Street bridge as police used tear gas, smoke and flash bombs to disperse protesters.

The letter acknowledges institutional racism within law enforcement as well as injustices and police brutality against African Americans during the civil rights movement.

The letter also mentions Eric Garner, Walter Scott, Philando Castile and Jeremy Mardis as African Americans who unjustly lost their lives at the hands of police.

“Each of these cases raised different concerns, but collectively they add new and painful chapters to our history that compels all of us to take inventory and be held accountable,” the letter states.

Leadership and collaboration are needed to fix these issues, and leaders must reassure and calm the public rather than instigate and stoke discord.

“We need to take bold and courageous action to change the narrative of our history as it relates to the disparate impact and outcomes that policing has had — and continues to have — on African Americans, people of color and the disenfranchised,” the letter states.

This story was originally published June 1, 2020 at 6:20 PM.