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NAKAMOTO: Baton Rouge Police officer on leave after racist rants in online forum
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BATON ROUGE- The Baton Rouge Police Union dismissed treasurer Chris Kuhn this week after the Union found he posted racist messages on Tigerdroppings, an online blog.
Kuhn, a Sergeant who is assigned to the Baton Rouge Police Department's fourth district, was also placed on administrative leave from the department, the WBRZ Investigative Unit learned. The Fourth District is an area of town that is made up primarily of minorities and is around the corner from Southern University.
The police union said it was concerned about posts Kuhn made targeting Blacks, Asians, and those of the Jewish faith. Kuhn posted under the screen name "Pesticide" and his phone number tied to that screen name is how investigators traced the posts back to him.
"The Baton Rouge Police Union gave us some information about inappropriate posting on social media," L'Jean McKneely said. "We started our investigation once it was brought to the Chief of Police."
The WBRZ Investigative Unit traced posts made by the user Pesticide, which included the below comments:
PESTICIDE, re: 70%, 80% of deaths of COVID19 in Milwaukee, Chicago are African Americans
Posted: 4/8/20
"I can attest that I have been in my fair share of black homes and let me just say this. The overwhelming majority have really bad hygiene and cleanliness issues... What can you expect from a group that needs constant oiling to cut down on the ashy-ness."
PESTICIDE, re: What happened to the chick fil a on college?
Posted: 6/17/19
"I love the one in Denham.... Kids in Denham have some pride and manners unlike the s*** birds in Baton Rouge.... Thank God for the Amite River. Natural barrier to keep the trash out. That and some people can't swim."
PESTICIDE, re: White people are still raised to be racially illiterate
Posted: 9/16/18
"My old man taught me don't be like them, get off your a** and go to work. So yeah, I was raised in racism. Worked out pretty good so far."
PESTICIDE, re: Would you rather live under Hitler or Stalin?
Posted: 3/6/20
"Hitler. I'm German so I'm good."
PESTICIDE, re: 94 year old Tennessee man deported
Posted: 3/6/20
"...While I seriously empathize for those who died in the concentration camps, it's been long past due for the survivors to move on from it. WWII was 75 years ago, quit holding on to the past."
PESTICIDE, re: WYHI: Soon-to-be Supreme North Korea Leader edition
Posted: 4/26/20
"Koreans smell like garlic and I don't mean a light scent either. It's like they bathed in it, brushed their teeth with it then washed their mouth out with garlic. Anyone who's been to Korea can verify that."
PESTICIDE, re: 4 of the top 10 cities in the US for burglary are in Louisiana
Posted: 8/13/18
"BR representing #8. F*** I hate this town. It's like the brown stain around the toilet bowl, no matter how hard you try it's never getting clean. They could blow torch this town and the turds would still float to the top."
The messages that were posted also have Kuhn talking about sexually harassing and assaulting women, receiving oral sex at work, and calling the BRPD administration a three-ring circus.
The Baton Rouge Police Department said it has a strict policy for social media.
"We want to make sure individuals that are posting things are not doing it in a way that is inappropriate towards race or belittling anyone or anything political and being responsible in their posts," McKneely said.
Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome also released a statement about an hour after this story was first published.
"I am appalled at what I have read about the “racist rants” attributed to a Baton Rouge police officer. I know that Chief Paul acted swiftly to place the officer accused of making these racist comments on administrative leave. If the investigation determines that he is the one who made the remarks, he should be fired immediately. There is absolutely no place for that, and I will not tolerate it."
Kuhn and his attorney were not available for an interview Thursday.
In a statement released Thursday evening, Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy Paul took a strong stance: "Make no mistake – making racist and insensitive comments like the ones I read in the complaint, is a terminable offense in the Baton Rouge Police Department Policy. If our investigative efforts confirm that a Baton Rouge Police officer is responsible for the comments, I assure you, that individual will be held accountable."
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