Racine mayor orders review of Police Department after concerns of racial and gender bias

RACINE, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Racine Mayor Cory Mason has ordered a review of the Racine Police Department. The review comes after recently made known concerns about racial and gender bias in the Racine Police Department.

A survey conducted by the Racine Police Department unions revealed a number of Racine Police Department personnel who chose to make racially charged and sexist comments.

“Yesterday I met separately with the unions, Chief Howell, and a group of minority and female officers. All parties raised concerns about what they learned from the survey,” Mason said.

The Mayor continued his statement saying, "There is no place in city government for those who believe that their colleagues are incapable of performing and excelling at their duty to protect and serve the community simply because of their race or gender. I have stated publicly and privately that Racine needs a workforce that reflects the diversity of the community it serves. The city has been served well by the Community Oriented Policing philosophy. Our objective here is that we live up to those values."

Mayor Mason has ordered that the review take no longer than 30 days.

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