Atlanta suburb votes to fire police chief accused of racial profiling
An Atlanta suburb has decided that enough is enough and fired its police chief amid accusations that his department racially profiles its residents.
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An Atlanta suburb has decided that enough is enough and fired its police chief amid accusations that his department racially profiles its residents.
Dwayne Hobbs, who had been police chief in Forest Park for 22 years, was fired thanks to a 3-2 vote by the town’s council on Monday night.
Hobbs, who is white, had been with the department since 1973. He was fired after accusations of racial profiling emerged, according to Atlanta CBS-affiliate WSB.
Forest Park is nine miles south of Atlanta in neighboring Clayton County. The town of nearly 19,000 is nearly 38 percent Black and 34 percent Latino.
“Well, the people spoke,” Forest Park council member Dabouze Antoine said. “The people wanted change. I’m a voice for the people, and the city decided to go a different direction.”
Antoine wouldn’t confirm whether the accusations were the reason he and the other two members voted to fire him. He also did not specify what the department was specifically accused of doing.
In an interview last week, Hobbs said two city council members had accused his department of racial profiling during a public meeting in August.
“I had no dream it could end like this,” Hobbs told WSB. Hobbs claimed that he was being “forced to retire” last week, but on Monday, he was officially fired.
Police Capt. Jason Armstrong has been named interim police chief.
Watch Hobbs’ interview with local tv station WSBTV below:
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