The St. Louis police officers’ union said it “lost trust” in Chief John Hayden and asked Gov. Mike Parson to intercede in the handling of violent riots following the death of George Floyd.
The St. Louis Police Officers Association asked Parson to “put someone else in charge who has experience with tactical operations; deploy the National Guard and Highway Patrol to help city officers; and make sure officers have enough equipment to protect themselves,” in a letter Tuesday, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
“We have no confidence in this police chief and the only safe way for our police officers to respond to this civil disobedience going forward is for somebody else to be making command decisions,” Jeff Roorda, the union’s business manager, told the Post-Dispatch. (RELATED: Six Atlanta Police Officers Charged After Ripping College Students From A Car During A Protest)
The union requested a response from Parson within two hours. Parson agreed with some of the union’s requests, but has not replied to others, according to the Post-Dispatch.
Parson had sent the National Guard and Highway Patrol to help the city on Tuesday, and “there’s more coming and we’re very satisfied,” Roorda added.
Similar to other major cities across the country, protests in St. Louis have been widely peaceful during the day, with escalations happening at night. Four police officers on Tuesday were shot and are expected to fully recover, while retired St. Louis police Cpt. David Dorn died from gunshots inflicted by alleged looters, the Post-Dispatch reported.
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— St. Louis, MO Police (@SLMPD) June 2, 2020
Parson ordered 1,000 military troops to disperse across the state to “stop the violence,” the Post-Dispatch reported.
St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson declared a state of emergency and instituted a curfew from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., which began June 2 and is in effect until further notice.
Krewson is asking citizens to protest peacefully in honor of Floyd and other African-Americans who have faced injustice, she said in a statement.
“I am committed to listening to the ideas of those who are demonstrating for change in how our police interact with our communities,” Krewson added.
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department was repeatedly contacted for comment and declined. Parson and the St. Louis Police Officers Association did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller Foundation’s request for comment.
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