Why Hasn’t Captain Jay Baker Been Fired for his Abhorrent ‘Bad Day’ Comments?

Deep-Seated Right Wing Ideology and Systemic Racism Underlying U.S. Policing at Root of  Comments Made by Captain Baker and Sheriff Reynolds

New Orleans – The National Police Accountability Project and its 600 members nationwide  demand Captain Jay Baker be terminated immediately for his comments that Robert Aaron  Long, the 21-year-old charged with killing eight people in Atlanta, six of them of Asian descent,  was ‘having a really bad day’.  

“Captain Baker must be fired immediately. There is no room for ‘administrative leave’ for him if  the Sheriff’s department is to save what little face it has today,” said Rachel Pickens, Executive  Director, National Police Accountability Project. “We cannot chalk this up to the case of one bad  apple, and must remember that this is the latest example in a long history of systemic racism  that underlies law enforcement in the United States.” 

On Thursday, Cherokee County Sheriff Frank Reynolds stated that Captain Baker’s comments  were “taken or construed as insensitive or inappropriate” but that they “were not intended to  disrespect any of the victims, the gravity of this tragedy, or express empathy or sympathy for  the suspect.” 

“With his comments today, Sheriff Reynolds has equally disrespected the victims of the  families, minimized the gravity of this tragedy and has shown more empathy to Captain Baker  than the communities that are grieving over this senseless attack,” continued Ms. Pickens. 

“It is time for dismantling the current paradigm that law enforcement in America operates  under. There is no more room for thoughts and prayers for victims and families. We must  address the underlying white supremacist ideology in law enforcement that allows Captain  Baker and Sheriff Reynolds to think their sentiments are not destructive to the communities  they were sworn to protect,” concluded Ms. Pickens.