A Black police officer has been terminated for using the N-word.
According to the Tampa press release, Delvin White was terminated from employment with the Tampa Police Department for violations of policy that prohibit discriminatory conduct.
White, an eight-year TPD veteran, was recently assigned as a School Resource Officer at Middleton High School.
The incident took place on November 13, 2020. White was on a phone call when his bodycam captured him referencing a group of people as “ghetto N*ggers.” He also admitted that just two weeks later, he used the N-word twice on November 30, 2020, while making an arrest for trespassing.
“Derogatory statements made by police officers jeopardize the trust that our department works to establish with our community,” said Chief Brian Dugan. “Tampa Police officers are held to a higher standard and incidents like this negatively impact the entire law enforcement profession.”
Following White’s termination, the Tampa Police Benevolent Association (PBA) expressed to News Channel 8 that they did not agree with the action taken against the former officer.
“We stand with the City of Tampa and the Tampa Police Department in their efforts to stamp out racism in every form and condemn any and all derogatory statements in or out of uniform,” it said, adding that, “The facts in the Delvin White matter do not reflect an act or any intent that warrants the punishment he received for his alleged transgression.”
While it cannot be denied that White’s behavior was unprofessional, Florida evidently has a double standard when it comes to the usage of the racial slur.
In June of last year, the head of the City of Miami’s Black police union, the Miami Community Police Benevolent Association (MCPBA), recalled an incident when Miami Chief Jorge Colina allegedly used the N-word during a law-enforcement training session about drug operations in 1997.
This is a secret in the closet that Colina doesn’t want to come out,” said Sgt. Stanley Jean-Poix, president of the MCPBA. He alleged that the MCPBA had received countless complaints from retired officers and longtime members of the police department about the alleged incident for years. Colina was never reprimanded and retired in January.
