Justin Barrett, 36, Suspended by Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis, for Sending Email Describing Henry Louis Gates, Jr., as a "Jungle Monkey"

The fallout from the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., continues. This time the racism is actually coming from one of the Boston Police Department's Finest -- Justin Barrett. He has been suspended for using a racial slur in reference to Mr. Gates in an email. Apparently once Commissioner Edward Davis learned of the slur he put Barrett, 36, on administrative leave pending a termination hearing. What did this man say? According to the Boston Globe, he referred to Henry Gates as a "jungle monkey," and he reportedly used it while reacting to the media coverage of the arrest. I guess the Boston Police Department has their own Mark Fuhrman. I am sure Fox News will be only too happy to have his as a regular contributor as they have done for Fuhrman.

In his e-mail, which was posted on a local Boston television station's Web site, Barrett declared that if he had "been the officer he verbally assaulted like a banana-eating jungle monkey, I would have sprayed him in the face with OC [oleoresin capsicum, or pepper spray] deserving of his belligerent noncompliance."

Barrett used the "jungle monkey" phrase four times, three times referring to Gates and once referring to Abraham's writing as "jungle monkey gibberish."

He also declared he was "not a racist but I am prejudice [sic] towards people who are stupid and pretend to stand up and preach for something they say is freedom but it is merely attention because you do not get enough of it in your little fear-dwelling circle of on-the-bandwagon followers." Source: CNN

Barrett, allegedly wrote the racially charged e-mail about professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. to colleagues at the National Guard. He has been on the job for two years and was stripped of his gun and badge yesterday. Here's the bigger issue that we should take away from this suspension -- this police has a racist view of blacks. Do you really think this mindset wouldn't manifest itself when he comes in contact with a black or Latino on his beat? Yes it would. I would caution readers not to judge the entire police force across this country by the actions of a few racist cops. There are many decent and hardworking police officers out there.