Racist text scandal at Northern California police department at center of court hearing
By JANIE HAR
Associated Press
MARTINEZ, Calif. (AP) — Racist text messages between members of a San Francisco Bay Area police department were the subject of a Friday court hearing on possible violations of a state law aimed at stamping out racism in the criminal justice system. Defense attorneys for four men charged with murder and attempted murder say their clients were unfairly targeted because of their race. Two of the defendants were mentioned in the messages, which had been made public by county prosecutors in April. No officers testified Friday. Five others said they were injured and couldn’t appear.
