The controversial traffic stop last month, during which a white Cobb County police officer told a black motorist “I don’t care about your people,” dominated the comments portion of Tuesday’s county commission meeting, and led commission Chairman Tim Lee to release a statement saying there is no place for discrimination in Cobb County.
The interaction between officer Maurice Lawson and motorist Brian Baker was captured on the dash board video. Lawson is the same officer who Commissioner Lisa Cupid, an African American, accused of profiling her in an incident this summer.
Cupid said Tuesday that the county needs to overhaul the police complaint process, provide cultural sensitivity training and prioritize diversity in the department to “make sure [officers] reflect the community.”
Cupid has also been an advocate for a citizen police review panel. She started her own panel, which has no real power except to review complaints and make recommendations, after her fellow commissioners would not support the idea.
“This is not just about discrimination,” Cupid said. “This is about people feeling unwelcome in Cobb County. This is about people coming here and being belittled, being made to feel unwelcome. And this is not just about people who live outside … there are people who live in Cobb who feel unwelcome. It is not infrequent.”
Cupid said the incident with Baker would have been “swept under the rug” had the middle school teacher not spoken out about it.
“I challenge this board to not be silent,” Cupid said. “This is not just about Brian Baker, or our legal team, or public safety. It reflects on us all.”
After the meeting, commission Chairman Tim Lee issued a statement through his spokeswoman.
“The comments I heard on tape, made by Officer Lawson to Mr. Baker, are inexcusable,” the statement says. “There is no place for discrimination in Cobb County and I will not tolerate it.
“…I believe Officer Lawson should be, at a minimum, put on unpaid leave while a swift investigation into his actions is conducted and completed. Further, I will use the powers I do have as to demand that the results of the investigation make it clear that this behavior will not be swept under the rug, will not be tolerated and is not permitted in Cobb County.”
Lawson has been reassigned to a new police precinct while the investigation into the traffic stop continues. But police already issued a letter of apology to Baker, saying the investigation found that Lawson committed a "very serious" violation of the department's code of conduct policy that brought "discredit to himself and the department."
As The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last week, Baker was stopped for allegedly speeding and failure to maintain his lane. Lawson yelled at Baker, 33, from Fulton County, and then appeared to mock him when he asked if he could leave the scene.
Lawson then said to Baker: “Leave. Go away. Go to Fulton County. I don’t care about your people, man, go.”
When Baker questioned the officer about what that comment meant, Lawson eventually replied: “Do you want to step out and talk to me?”
After Baker drove off, Lawson said to two other officers at the scene: “I lose my cool, man, every time. Why do I got to deal with (stuff) like that. This is the (expletive) America we live in, ain’t it?”
Cobb Public Safety Director Sam Heaton on Monday asked for an investigation by the county attorney's office into several aspects of the incident. Heaton said in probe will focus on decisions made during the initial investigative process, proper notification of department and county leaders, and the handling of dash camera videos.
About the Author
