On Thursday, September 24th, it was brought to the Fort Worth community's attention that two Fort Worth Police Officers, who happen to be married to each other, had been posting racist memes and pictures on their joint Facebook page. You can see the meme and the confederate flag in the photograph above. After they were exposed, they convenienlty removed the confederate flag picture... and eventually deactivated their account. Fort Worth Police Department then released this letter on Twitter:
The post being "removed" is not enough. Both of these officers need to be held accountable by being terminated. Black residents of Fort Worth have been crying out for decades for an end to the racial profiling, police brutality, and dehumanization by the Fort Worth Police Department, that behavior like that of the Ballards feeds right into. The $300K Police Expert Review Panel that the city hired after Atatiana Jefferson was murdered by Fort Worth Police Officer Aaron Dean, just returned a scathing preliminary report that says on page 11:

"Community members reported to the Review Panel that encounters are often hostile and threatening and that officers are often aggressive from te initiation of any encounter and shout and curse at them. Community members also report that there is often little or no effort to engage or to de-escalate."

The Review Panel also reported viewing several police body cam videos that back up these claims and confirm these sick patterns. What we do not need at this moment is closeted, albeit clumsy, racists on the police force, insiduously wreaking havoc on Black Fort Worthians and other people of color. Roger and Catherine have been exposed for who they are... and they ran and hid. Fire them.

Our Black community desreves better and we cannot afford to have them sitting in seats of power in the FWPD, whether that's on the streets, or behind a desk -- anywhere they remain on the force, they are a bad influence to all, and keeping them on conveys the message the the City of Fort Worth is not serious about police reform or mending community-police relationships like you continue to say you are. We still don't believe you. Show us. Police Chief Kraus, fire Roger and Catherine Ballard now, and initiate a department wide social media audit to route out and expose other officers with accounts or online affiliations like this one that undermine public trust and put our community in danger.

Thank you,
United Fort Worth