Jun 24, 2019

South Bend police union: Buttigieg is playing politics in shooting case

Rebecca Falconer

Democratic presidential candidate South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg. — Democratic presidential candidate and South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg. Photo: Sean Rayford/Getty Images

The South Bend, Indiana, police union said Monday Mayor Pete Buttigieg has made decisions on the city's officer-involved shooting "solely for his political gain."

Details: The South Bend Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #36 accused the Democratic presidential candidate in a statement of "driving a wedge between law enforcement officers and the community" after it was announced a special prosecutor was requested to probe the fatal shooting of Eric Logan, a 54-year-old black man, by a white police officer, per AP.

Why it matters: The case is seen by many as a test of Buttigieg's leadership skills. Buttigieg took time off the 2020 campaign trail to deal with the fallout from the June 16 shooting, as his campaign was soaring. Some critics have suggested Buttigieg has a history of alienating minorities in South Bend. A June poll shows nearly half of African Americans surveyed don't know him.

Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio), the former chairperson of the Congressional Black Caucus, told The Daily Beast Monday, "Pete has a black problem. I don’t know of one black person out of Indiana that supports him."

The big picture: Buttigieg said at a town hall Sunday he'd write to the Justice Department to request its civil rights division look into the shooting and notify the local prosecutor that he'd like to see the appointment of an independent investigator.

Go deeper: Pete Buttigieg on the issues, in under 500 words

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South Bend police union: Buttigieg is playing politics in shooting case

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