DALLAS – There have been 13 Dallas police officers disciplined for making offensive statements on social media, including posts that were deemed bigoted or made light of police violence.
The police department announced Thursday that officers whose posts violated department policy would receive punishments ranging from a written reprimand to unpaid suspension, NBCDFW reported.
Moreover, two additional cases remain under review while one officer resigned, the department said in a statement on the disciplinary measures. The officers have the right to appeal their discipline.
“It is imperative that we operate with the highest level of ethics and integrity to ensure that the public is confident in the legitimacy of who we are as a law enforcement agency,” Dallas Police Chief U. Renee Hall said.
The officer’s posts were among thousands identified by researchers with the Plain View Project as potentially undermining public confidence in police departments around the country, NBCDFW reported.
As a result of the groups findings last June, the Dallas Police Department launched its own internal review. Internal affairs investigators reviewed hundreds of posts dating back to 2010. Of the 169 Dallas officers identified in the Plain View Project, only 60 were currently working for the department, according to the police statement.
Some of the remaining officers were found to have not violated department policy and others were given cultural awareness training, police said.
In July, the department said 25 officers could face discipline for making offensive posts, including ones that made light of suicide, mocked protesters who were pepper-sprayed and joked about police shooting victims.
