Police Statement Regarding the Death of Mr. George Floyd

Published on June 02, 2020

Members of the Arlington County Community,

Once again, the actions of a few law enforcement officers have brought the country to its knees with a single reprehensible act that resulted in the death of Mr. George Floyd and showed a complete and total disregard for a life they swore to protect. From all appearances, there is no way to look at this event without coming to a singular conclusion; this was a gross miscarriage of justice, in fact, a criminal offense. The officers involved displayed a wanton disregard for safeguarding the life of the individual they were charged with protecting. Their actions were inexcusable and indefensible.

As Chief of Police, along with members of the Arlington Coalition of Police and the Arlington Police Beneficiary Association, we felt compelled to speak out. The actions of these officers in Minneapolis will have a lasting and detrimental impact on communities across America. The person targeted by their action was an African American male, a member of a community that has a history of mistrust of the police. We value the working relationship and collaboration we receive from members of Arlington's diverse and inclusive community and commit to continuing to further this trust and partnership.

What we see in this video is not and never has been the Arlington County Police Department. We stand ready to continue in our efforts to meet with and serve all members of our community. A letter to the community was recently shared describing in great detail our efforts to ensure this type of incident does not occur within our community.

Sincerely,

M. Jay Farr
Chief of Police

Scott Wanek, President
Arlington Coalition of Police

Rich Conigliaro, President
Arlington Police Beneficiary Association