By Ben Morgan and FOX23.com News Staff
TULSA, Okla. — Following a statement in response to his reaction to the death of a Minneapolis woman by an ICE officer from Tulsa County Sheriff Vic Regalado, Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols has issued another statement.
Shared on Facebook, Mayor Nichols clarified his comments on the fatal shooting and apologized for accidentally upsetting members of the Tulsa community and local law enforcement.
He said, in part, “Let me be clear, my comments regarding the incident in Minneapolis was in no way shape or form an attack on law enforcement…and there is no way I’d ever want to cast a negative light on those who do the hard work of protecting us everyday.”
Mayor Nichols’ response is to a statement issued by Tulsa Sheriff Vic Regalado via the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page. In his statement, Sheriff Regalado argued when public officials observe tragic events with a political lens, they risk creating disorder.
Regalado claimed the mayor’s statements “condemned” a law enforcement officer “before all facts are known.”
“When public officials frame tragedy through a political lens, they risk turning grief into grievance and disagreement into disorder,” said Regalado in his statement. “The recent statements given by Tulsa MAyor Monroe Nichols publicly condemning a law enforcement officer for a shooting in Minneapolis before all the facts are known and before due process has had an opportunity to take place was irresponsible.”
In his most recent response, Mayor Nichols clarifies that his intent was not to stir discord but to bring awareness to a tragedy that took the life of Renee Good.
“What I tried to communicate was the acknowledgement that something went tragically wrong and there must be accountability, by way of a thorough investigation into the policy, practices and actions that led to the death of Ms. Good. I stand by that,” wrote Mayor Nichols. “All that said, the last thing I’d ever want to do is divide this community. I’d much prefer to model what unity looks like even in times of great difficulty.”
Read the mayor’s full statement below:
“Let me be clear, my comments regarding the incident in Minneapolis was in no way shape or form an attack on law enforcement, my father dedicated his life to police work and there is no way I’d ever want to cast a negative light on those who do the hard work of protecting us everyday.
“What I tried to communicate was the acknowledgment that something went tragically wrong and there must be accountability, by way of a thorough investigation into the policy, practices and actions that led to the death of Ms. Good. I stand by that.
“All that said, the last thing I’d ever want to do is to divide this community, I’d much prefer to model what unity looks like even in times of great difficulty.
“I’m not too proud to recognize my comments alienated some in our law enforcement community and since my grandfather taught me a lessons in humility, I sincerely apologize for that. I also encourage everyone to treat each other with respect while expressing your opinions in the comments. We are all in this together.”
