The Tampa police union is working to get a Black officer reinstated after he was fired for using the n-word
Tampa officer Delvin White was fired after bodycam footage revealed him using the n-word.
White was an eight-year veteran and most recently a school resource officer.
The Tampa police union said it will file a formal grievance on Officer White's behalf.
Tampa officer Delvin White was fired this week after bodycam footage revealed him using the n-word during a personal call and arrest last November.
White, who is a Black man, was an eight-year veteran of the department and was most recently assigned as a School Resource Officer at Middleton High School.
In a statement from Tampa police, White made a personal call on November 13, 2020, when his body camera picked up him calling a group of people "ghetto N------".
The department released the bodycam footage where White is heard having a discussion with a woman about the differences in their jobs.
"Every day that I go to work and not one kid gets shot or stabbed, that means I've done my job. And that's a lot of responsibility. You don't have all that responsibility," White said in the video.
"Well, you know, some will say you have more responsibility. You manage a multimillion-dollar property," he said. "Or ... some ghetto n----- don't get shot or stabbed, I don't know. But to they mama, though, they worth a million dollars."
In a separate incident on November 20, White told his supervisor he used the n-word while making an arrest, police said.
"Derogatory statements made by police officers jeopardize the trust that our department works to establish with our community", said Chief Brian Dugan in the statement. "Tampa Police officers are held to a higher standard and incidents like this negatively impact the entire law enforcement profession."
But the Tampa Police Benevolent Association released a statement Tuesday that the organization will file a formal grievance on Officer White's behalf.
"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," the statement says. "Officer White is a beloved and trusted member of the East Tampa community that he was raised in and that he protected every day."
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