3 Bay Area Police Unions Calling For End Of 'Vilification' Of Officers; Ask For A Dialogue
SAN JOSE (KCBS) — In the wake of the fatal shootings of two police officers in New York, police unions in the Bay Area's three largest cities are calling for a "constructive dialogue" and an end to the "vilification" of police officers by protesters.
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In a two page letter, police union leaders write that while the protests began as legitimate expression of views, they have "devolved into vilification and violence against this nation's public safety servants."
Instead the police officers association of San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose are calling for a dialogue.
San Jose Police Chief Larry Esquivel recently addressed protesters that were upset about a veteran police officer was placed on leave after tweets from an account apparently belonging to him were critical, and some said, threatening to activists involved in the I Can't Breathe and Black Lives Matter protests.
"Believe me, this is very troubling for us as organization; it is not what we stand for," he said.
The letter come after last Saturday's ambush-style killings of New York police officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos by lone-gunman Ismaaiyl Brinsley, who posted on social media that that he wanted revenge for the police-involved deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown.
The police union said that those shootings have left officers "shaken to the core."
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