NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - A former South Carolina police officer who was fired for hitting a handcuffed black man says officials used a flashlight inscribed with a Nazi symbol to scapegoat him.
The Post and Courier reports Leroy Hair denied knowing about the North Charleston police-issued flashlight found in his car. It was emblazoned with “SS” and “The Wig Splitter.” His lawyer, Edward Phipps, alleges officials planted it to paint Hair as an outlier, covering up a heavy-handed police culture.
He wasn’t accused of using the flashlight to assault James Terry in 2016.
The city’s attorney, Caroline Cleveland, says officials haven’t determined who was responsible for the etchings, but notes the flashlight was discovered in the vehicle Hair was using. She says Hair was fired after acknowledging that hitting Terry was a “big mistake.”
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Information from: The Post and Courier, http://www.postandcourier.com
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