Members of the East County NAACP held a press conference Thursday in front of the embattled Antioch Police Department headquarters heaping praise on Chief Steven Ford, who announced his retirement Wednesday evening.
At least 45 officers of the department's approximately 100 officers -- including 16 in management positions -- have been implicated in a racist and homophobic texting scandal that included threats against Antioch Mayor Lamar Thorpe, who is Black, and other African Americans and people of color.
"He was at the barber shop, the beauty shop, he was at the bank, he was at the car wash, he was everywhere, letting them know that you have a police department that really cares about you," she said. In a letter Wednesday evening addressed"To the Antioch Community," Ford said he was grateful for the opportunity and has worked with"some very talented and passionate people -- it has been a great privilege to learn and grow from them."
Ford's tenure has been marred by his department being investigated by the FBI and the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office for the past year-and-a-half for civil rights violations stemming from the text messages. The scandal has been big enough for many to call for a federal takeover of the department.
Asked if Ford was taking the fall for a fractured department and perhaps letting others off the hook, Lefrancois said she disagreed.
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