A white police officer in McKeesport, Pennsylvania has been fired from the force after her superiors learned that she posted a selfie on Snapchat while she was dressed in her uniform and used a racial slur in the caption. Action News 4 in Pittsburgh reports that former Pitcairn Police Department officer Melissa Adamson posted the photo to her Snapchat months ago but that it was just recently brought to the attention of her superiors.
The photo shows Adamson in uniform with a caption that reads, "I'm the law today n***a." After being fired from her job, she also resigned from a part-time police job she held in nearby Versaille. Adamson told Action News 4 that the photo was "a stupid mistake" and insisted that she is not a racist.
"Everyone that knows me knows I don’t have a racist bone in my body," Adamson said. "And people who don’t know me, I can understand why it was misconstrued to where it looks racist. But like I said, everyone who knows me knows I'm not racist. I don't want this to affect how I do my job." Adamson added that she loves being a cop and wants to be an officer for the rest of her life.
The McKeesport Mayor's Office posted a statement to Facebook on Tuesday confirming that Adamson had been fired. McKeesport mayor Michael Cherepko said that Adamson's behavior "displays a degree of conduct and character that is far different from what I would expect from an officer in this city. It is absolutely unacceptable." The statement added that she was fired "without hesitation."
