Black leaders address allegations of police racism

by CJaye | November 4, 2008 at 08:31 am

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Second Precinct Capt. Tony Zucaro says the department launched the internal investigation after Officer Steven J. Kennedy said in deposition that he and other officers had used racial slurs. The August 21 deposition was given in a civil rights lawsuit filed against the city by Hammerheads, a bar in the Oceanfront section.

VIRGINIA BEACH

Several activists gathered on the steps of Virginia Beach City Hall on Monday to decry alleged racism by Beach police.

Owners of the Hammerheads bar on Atlantic Avenue allege in a federal civil rights lawsuit that the city is discriminating against the bar and its largely minority clientele. The city is seeking a dismissal of the suit, which is scheduled to go to trial on Thursday.

In a deposition that's part of the suit, a Virginia Beach police officer said he and other officers used racial slurs on the job, specifically while patrolling the Oceanfront's bar district.

James Bailey, an incoming president for the Virginia Beach NAACP, said the episode demonstrates the need for his organization.

link to video: http://tinyurl.com/55w2wn