Former law enforcement officer Matthew Horace, in an interview that aired Thursday on Hill.TV’s “Rising,” explained comments made in his new book, “The Black and the Blue,” that describes various police officers as “time bombs waiting to explode,” citing treatment from police departments.
“Police departments don’t treat their organizations like businesses in terms of wellness programs and monitoring officer behavior,” Horace told Hill.TV’s Krystal Ball on Oct. 3.
“Officers, many times, are rewarded for what police departments see as production: more arrests, more felony arrests, more fines, more ticketings. So then your behavior becomes rewarded as you move up the ranks for the same behavior that’s detrimental to certain communities,” he continued.
“The Black and the Blue” details Horace’s experience with police culture, policies and issues facing police departments across the country.
Horace’s comments come as police officers face increased scrutiny amid a series of racially charged incidents involving white police officers and people of color.
Two former Florida police officers were sentenced on Thursday to a year in federal prison for their roles in framing a black teenager for burglaries. The two officers admitted to framing the teen in an effort to help their police chief claim a perfect rate of solved cases.
Earlier this month, jurors in Chicago found Jason Van Dyke, a white police officer, guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of Laquan McDonald, a black teenager, in 2014.
— Julia Manchester
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