Charlotte police chief asks FBI to investigate officers' alleged racist texts
Charlotte's police chief, Estella Patterson, said Thursday that three officers quit over text messages she said showed racial, sexual and religious bias. Three more face firing, and she has asked the FBI to look into it, the Charlotte Observer reported. Her team has found no sign so far that residents were targeted, she said.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Estella Patterson said Thursday that six officers were involved in a series of text messages that she said showed bias, the Charlotte Observer and WBTV reported. She asked the FBI to investigate, the Observer said.
Three of the officers have resigned, Patterson said at a news conference. The other three are on unpaid leave and have been cited for termination, which a city board must approve at a date not yet set, the Observer reported. All six were from the same 2024 graduating class and are of three different races, she said.
"My personal reaction is one of disgust," Patterson said, according to the Observer. She said the messages showed racial, sexual and religious bias and went back "several years." According to sources who spoke to WBTV, one thread showed officers talking about a competition over who could pull over the most Black drivers.
"I hope they will not be officers anywhere in the country," Patterson said, adding that she wants the state to revoke their police certificates.
The department reviewed the officers' traffic stops, arrests, body camera video and complaints and so far has found nothing showing residents were targeted, Patterson said. The texts were found during a State Bureau of Investigation probe of former officer Seth Elliott, the outlets reported. The SBI charged Elliott with accessing government computers after he looked up a license plate for a friend using Flock camera technology, the Observer said.
Mayor Robert Harrington said in a statement that "racism and bias have no place in our police department or anywhere in our city," WBTV reported. U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson said his office is looking at a possible civil rights case but said the legal bar is "very, very high," WBTV reported.
Charlotte NAACP President Corine Mack told the Observer she had warned Patterson about possible racists in the department. The county district attorney's office had not begun reviewing cases tied to the officers as of Wednesday evening, the Observer said.
What we know: Three officers resigned, three face termination, and the chief asked the FBI to investigate.
What we don't: When the city board will rule, or whether any criminal cases will be affected.
Where outlets agree The Observer and WBTV both report that three officers resigned, three face termination and the chief sought a federal review.
Where they differ The outlets cited here report the same key facts so far.