Officer resigns after urging drivers to 'run down' Black Lives Matter protesters
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Minnesota police officer who reportedly urged drivers to “run down” Black Lives Matter protesters in a Facebook post resigned from his department Wednesday after complaints by members of the community.
The St. Paul Police Department announced that it has accepted the resignation of Jeffrey Rothecker.
“His resignation is effective immediately. No further information is available at this time,” police said in a statement obtain by Fox 9.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The station reported that under the name “JM Roth,” the former police officer posted on Facebook that drivers encountering Martin Luther King Day marchers on a bridge in town should “run them down.”
The report said that Rothecker went on in the post to explain how to best avoid criminal charges. Rothecker soon apologized and released a statement saying, “poor choice of words conveyed a message I did not intend and am not proud of."
Rothecker had been a St. Paul officer for more than 20 years.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Black Lives Matter St. Paul lead organizer Rashad Turner said the group believes that Rothecker's resignation is long overdue and that he should be criminally charged.
The Facebook post was "very irresponsible, very dangerous, and it just shouldn't be tolerated in our community by those who are hired to protect and serve," Turner said.
The group had said it would disrupt the popular Red Bull Crashed Ice event Feb. 27 in St. Paul if Rothecker was not fired. Turner said they still plan to protest the ice skating race that draws thousands of spectators.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Associated Press contributed to this report.