TOP OF THE HOUR:
— Maryland police chief steps down amid reports of racial bias.
— Lawsuit: Oregon boy, 12, pinned to ground by deputies with knee to his neck.
UPPER MARLBORO, Md. — A Maryland police chief is stepping down amid reports alleging racial bias and discrimination toward officers of color.
President Donald Trump speaks about the PREVENTS "President's Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End a National Tragedy of Suicide," task force, in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, June 17, 2020, in Washington. (AP PhotoAlex Brandon)
Prince George’s County police Chief Hank Stawinski resigned Thursday as the NAACP planned to hold a vote of no-confidence against his leadership. The resignation also comes after the American Civil Liberties Union detailed discriminatory practices and retaliation by the department in a 94-page report.
Thirteen black and Hispanic officers asked the ACLU to file a lawsuit on their behalf in 2018, accusing the department of allowing racist actions and punishing minority officers who reported the incidents. County Executive Angela Alsobrooks made the announcement. Stawinski didn’t immediately respond to comment requests.
CLACKAMAS, Ore. — The mother of an African American boy filed a $300,000 lawsuit Thursday, saying three sheriff’s deputies near Portland pinned him to the ground — one by pressing a knee on his neck — outside a suburban mall after the 12-year-old witnessed a fight and was walking away.
The incident happened last August, more than nine months before widespread national outrage over the killing of George Floyd after he was put in a similar hold by Minneapolis police.
The boy, Ka’Mar Benbo, is now 13 but was 12 at the time and the friends he was with repeatedly told Clackamas County deputies his age, the lawsuit said.
A spokesperson for the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office didn’t respond to a request for comment Thursday from the Associated Press.
Chris Owen, spokesman for the Clackamas County District Attorney, said nothing had been submitted to prosecutors on the incident.
“If we get presented the necessary information, we will certainly evaluate it,” he said.
Clackamas County is a suburban area southeast of Portland.
More news about the death of George Floyd at https://apnews.com/GeorgeFloyd