5 Antioch Officers Skip Court Hearing by Claiming "Industrial Injuries" Amid Racial Discrimination Scandal

Five of the 15 Antioch police officers subpoenaed to testify in a hearing related to racism and alleged crimes within the police department are reportedly avoiding attending by claiming they are out on injury leave, raising eyebrows among defense attorneys and the public according to SFist. Antioch Police Chief Steven Ford signed sworn declarations under penalty of perjury, stating that these officers, some under FBI investigation and others who sent racist texts, have "not been medically cleared by (their) physician to attend court," KTVU reported.

The hearing set for Friday seeks to explore the department's alleged violations of the Racial Justice Act. The outcome of this hearing could result in the dismissal of serious criminal charges against four men accused of committing a series of gang-related shootings. These five officers are speculated to be evading questioning, not only about the offensive texts but also alleged crimes committed by their colleagues, while defense attorneys express skepticism over their claimed injuries.

Antioch police Lt. Michael Mellone stated that the department is "not allowed to order an employee to perform any functions that a physician has said they are not able to do," but they will continue to facilitate subpoena service for employees without such restrictions according to the East Bay Times. It is important to note that more than a dozen current and former Antioch and Pittsburg officers are under criminal investigation by the FBI, and all five of the unavailable officers have been implicated in at least one of the ongoing scandals plaguing the Antioch police force since early 2022.

One of the five officers, a K9 officer named Morteza Amiri, reportedly claimed to have accidentally injured himself while walking his dog after being placed on unpaid leave last year when the FBI raided his home and seized his cellphone. However, Amiri was allowed to keep the dog, Purcy, even though a criminal grand jury was weighing felony charges against him for several incidents involving Purcy biting someone while Amiri was on duty.

The situation begs the question of whether the racial bias accusations, compounded by the officers' alleged injuries, could impact the legitimacy of potentially thousands of criminal convictions involving these implicated officers.

While Friday's hearing promises to be an important one in determining the extent of the scandal and its consequences, the absence of these five officers only serves to deepen doubts around their honesty, fairness, and commitment to the community they have sworn to protect and serve.