A Rochester, Minn., police officer has been put on administrative leave and the department is conducting an investigation after learning about racially offensive posts he had made to his Facebook page, Police Chief Roger Peterson confirmed Monday.
Peterson said he received a forwarded e-mail from the group Me to We Racial Healing on Thursday, and another from the Facebook group Rochester for Justice on Friday, each containing similar allegations.
Officer Ben Schlag, 31, who has worked for the Rochester Police Department for five years, was put on paid leave Friday, the chief said.
The posts on Schlag's Facebook page included a drawing of a vehicle chasing and hitting stick figures with the words, "Nobody cares about your protest." Another has the words, "Studies show that Muslim Radicals are less prone to violence after they've been shot in the [expletive] face."
In a 4½-page letter dated Feb. 17 and addressed to Peterson, Mayor Ardell Brede and others, Me to We Racial Healing said it is "a national group of nearly 1,000 citizens with headquarters in Minnesota."
The letter included screen shots of several posts that Schlag has since removed. It said the posts "show a clear pattern of disregard for systemic and interconnected realities and a distinct disrespect for people of color and people who care about racial justice. … It is unsettling to imagine how his racism would play out in relationships with other officers, the Rochester community and surrounding areas in engagements that are isolated and/or out of public view."
Reached by phone Monday, Schlag, of Rochester, said, "This is something that will have to be handled by the department, so I'm going to redirect all questions to the department."
His Facebook page said he served in the Army but he would not elaborate on his military service.
