Huntersville Police Expected To Prevent, Report Misconduct: Chief

HUNTERVILLE, NC — Police officers in Huntersville are expected to prevent and report all unethical behavior, Huntersville Police Chief Bence Hoyle said in a letter to the community Tuesday.

The message comes in the wake of widespread national outcry following the death of Minnesotan George Floyd killed last week by police during an arrest.

Floyd, 46, died Monday after being stopped by Minneapolis police investigating a reported forgery. Video from the scene showed former police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on a handcuffed Floyd's neck as Floyd cried out, saying he couldn't breathe.

Floyd's death has sparked days of protesting and street violence in every major city in the country, including many in North Carolina.

"The actions we all observed in the video are not only deeply disturbing, but are contrary to our training and we do not condone them," Hoyle said.

Text of the full letter may be read here:

To our Huntersville community,

The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, MN was a tragic and unnecessary loss of life and our deepest condolences go out to the Floyd family. The actions we all observed in the video are not only deeply disturbing, but are contrary to our training and we do not condone them.

The foundations of our profession — honesty, integrity and truthfulness, hold us to a higher standard than most. Given that, we strive to hire the best, brightest and most emotionally solid officers to serve in our great Huntersville community. I take very seriously my responsibility to ensure that our officers receive the very best training and mentorship possible. That being said, there is a possibility that an officer may be confronted with a situation where they are either asked, or expected, to condone and/or engage in inappropriate behavior.

It is my absolute expectation that officers will not engage in or condone unethical conduct, and that they will not tolerate such behavior on the part of any other employee, regardless of his or her rank or position. I expect officers to prevent misconduct from occurring and to report it immediately if it does. My overriding theme in my expectations is that "we are one another's keepers." More so than other professionals, we play a role in governing the conduct and behavior of our colleagues.

Serving the incredibly supportive Huntersville community is not a blessing we take for granted. We are dedicated to protecting the rights of ALL individuals while fairly and impartially performing the duties of our office. Not only do we expect to he held accountable, we welcome it. We are human, have families and hearts like you that want peace and seek a need for change.

We respect and support the demonstrations of free speech in recent days, for any change that has ever made us better as a country has come from the voices of all different types of people from all walks of life. Despite all the criminal misconduct, we must recognize there are legitimate peaceful protestors whose voices are being drowned out by criminals using the protests as cover to loot, damage and destroy. We condemn those actions strongly but support the protestors who are peaceful and trying to get their message out.

We extend our sympathy to the Floyd family during this difficult time and pray for all those who have been affected.

Sincerely,
Bence Hoyle
Chief of Police

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