St. Louis County Cop Removed from Active Duty Over 'Killer' Comments

A St. Louis County police officer will be on administrative leave for the duration of an internal investigation into a video in which he bragged about being a “killer” and made derogatory comments, a department spokesman told NBC News Saturday. Officer Dan Page, a 35-year police veteran and military service member is seen in the hour-long video addressing a St. Louis chapter of the Oath Keepers, a conservative group of former servicemen, saying in part, “I'm also a killer. I've killed a lot, and if I need to I'll kill a whole bunch more. If you don't want to get killed, don't show up in front of me."

Page also referred to gay people as “sodomites” and called President Barack Obama an “illegal alien.” St. Louis County Police Department has been criticized for officers’ response to the protests that broke out in Ferguson after Michael Brown was shot and killed by a Ferguson Police Department officer. St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar apologized for the comments, calling them "disturbing." In a statement, he said, that while Page "has never been involved in an officer-involved shooting, the statements made about killing are unacceptable and not what we are about as a department." After the video surfaced, CNN reported that Page was the same officer who pushed CNN anchor Don Lemon on television while the reporter was covering the protests in Ferguson, and St. Louis County Police Department spokesman Brian Schellman confirmed to NBC News that Page shoved Lemon.

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