White Officer is Finally Fired After Calling Black Police Chief the N-Word, and Threatening to Beat Her to Death

Nelsonville, OH — Joshua Braglin, a white police officer from Ohio, has been fired following a lengthy investigation for his alleged racist, insulting social media post against Hocking College Interim Police Chief Tiffany Tims, who is an African American.

Nelsonville City Council unanimously voted to terminate Officer Braglin. The 6-0 vote came after a months-long investigation of his social media conduct, which reportedly includes racist comments directed at Tims.

City Manager Chuck Barga read the recommendation during the city council meeting last Wednesday to fire Braglin for violating the city’s social media policies.

Braglin, who has been working in the department since 2007, posted on Facebook a meme of Tims sitting in a car and a text saying, “Acting Chief Timms… Chicken and Waffles baby.”

Another screenshot, which appears to be from Facebook Messenger, shows him implying that Tims is a monkey. The words were, “A reading from the book of Braglin. The Lord sayith to young Joshua, the force between good and evil, ‘Step forward and speak your mind, if the half (expletive) chief and old bitty president of a sinking college don’t like your comments, tell them to (expletive) off’ …. for the Lord’s house has many rooms, 1 filled with bananas, the other with Efferdent.”

Moreover, at least two police officers confirmed that they have heard Braglin said in an off-duty conversation that he would “beat that n– to death with a banana” before Tims could become the permanent police chief of Hocking College.

Tims filed a complaint last year about Braglin’s conduct. But it took months before the decision. Protesters claim that Braglin is being protected by police. Barga explained that it took longer than usual because all of the reported comments were made “off-duty.”

On April 3 this year, Braglin was placed on paid administrative leave, and then on unpaid leave on April 26. Last week, NAACP Dayton chapter called for the termination of Braglin. Over twenty protesters also attended the meeting on Wednesday.

Andrea Reany, a protester who is a member of the local chapter of the Showing Up for Racial Justice, is happy about the decision but says it is not yet the end.

“I’d also like to say that I am disappointed in many ways that it has taken this long to get to this point,” Reany said, “and the lack of action that has happened on behalf of the city administration to get us to this point, where this officer was so-called protecting the citizens of Nelsonville for being in the position for as long as he was, and it is just truly unconscionable that this person (was) tasked with protecting the safety of every person in our community.”