Florida Officer Suspended For Posting Racist Comment

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BARTOW (CBSMiami/AP) — Law enforcement officials are held to a higher standard than most, and rightly so.

A Bartow police officer who posted a racist comment about President Barack Obama in November has been placed on administrative leave.

The Lakeland Ledger reports that 33-year-old Officer Christina Arribas was placed on paid leave Friday after state prosecutors sent her a letter saying she could no longer appear as a witness in court.

Authorities say Arribas compared Obama to a gorilla in a post on her personal Facebook page after the November presidential election. Arribas was suspended for 23 hours at the time.

The prosecutors' letter said evidence of racial bias was so strong Arribas could no longer be used as a witness.

High school students staged a protest Thursday about the Arribas case outside the Bartow Police Department.

Arribas has been on the force since 2006.

(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)